A lot of people have a lot of ideas for how to make Swindon town centre better but what do the people who are there the most think - the business owners? 

An Adver investigation found that the number of empty shops had fallen in the past two years, and - bar those deliberately left empty for redevelopment - there were 33 empty units.

We spoke to a handful of the many stores in the area to see what it is they'd like to see happen in the area to reverse its fortunes and change perceptions. 

Vince Ayris - owner of Vince Ayris shoe repair, key cutting and engraving - on Havelock Street believes that locally owned and independent businesses are the way forward.

He said: "There are lots of things that can be done to make the town centre better, but the main thing is more support for local businesses and encourage them.

"This could include lowering business rates and VAT for them to make setting up shop more attractive."

Marcus Kittridge, owner of Baristocats, has experienced financial struggles keeping his Commercial Road cafe store running as the cost of living and energy crisis drives expenses up. 

He said: "Business rates need to be looked at - we're paying an extortionate amount here of £210 per square metre per year.

"But also, landlords shouldn't be able to sit on empty buildings and they should be forced to keep those empty buildings in good shape to keep the area looking nice. They should be incentivised to rent or sort buildings out."

Jenny Gaunt, manager of JD Sports, believes that there is a good range of shops in the area but they need support from the police and Swindon Borough Council to bring customers back. 

Jenny said: “ I've been working in retail here for years and it really needs support.

“One of the things I said was that we have the shops, we have a very good range of shops, the town’s still open and on days when we have the market, it’s vibrant.

“But the shops we have are really spread out, and there’s all these empty units dating back to the early 2000s. If we could make the shopping area a bit more compact it would look much better.”

Another manager from a town centre store who wished to remain anonymous suggested that more needed to be done to clamp down on anti-social behaviour. 

They said: "We've seen some positive action from Wiltshire Police in recent months, but since InSwindonBID closed, and even before that, there have been issues with crime in the area.

"Most of the time the town centre is pleasant and busy, but it only takes one negative experience to put someone off and I think that's what we see online when people put it down. 

"We need there to be proactive action to reassure people that the town centre is safe and welcoming."

However, most of the businesses had the same overall message - there was a need for more positivity from residents.