Residents living in an anti-social behaviour hotspot on an estate in Swindon have said they commonly witness drug dealing and knife crime.

Emma Phillips, a borough council anti-social behaviour officer, said the area had “fallen into a state of disrepair” and many local residents were feeling intimidated and “actively avoiding the area.”

According to data on the Wiltshire Police website, there were 30 crimes reported in Eldene in May 2024, nine of which were for anti-social behaviour, compared to 12 reported crimes in May 2023, where anti-social behaviour accounted for three of these cases.

The persistent illegal activity in recent years also contributed to the Crumpled Horn pub closing its doors for good in 2023, despite being there for over 50 years.

The Crumpled Horn pubThe Crumpled Horn pub (Image: Dave Cox)

Wiltshire Police said the venue posed "a serious risk to members of the community" and requested it to be shut down, after it became a hub for drug dealing and organised crime, prompted by a group of men entering the premises wielding machetes in March 2023.

But since then the Grade II-listed building has been boarded up.  

A Swindon Borough Council safety team were out in Eldene with neighbourhood police officers on Wednesday, July 31 and Thursday, August 1, conducting a community survey as part of their long-term goal to regenerate the run-down estate.

While they patrolled Bowleymead Square, Swindon South MP Heidi Alexander joined the community officers to speak to residents about the impact anti-social behaviour has on their daily lives.

Heidi Alexander said: “There’s been a long-standing problem with anti-social behaviour and drug dealing in the area. People want this tackled.

"They want rid of the drug dealers and some residents would like to see the large, planted area on the square halfway up Bowleymead removed.

"It’s pretty overgrown and it tends to be one of the places where people who are up to no good hang around.

“Knives have been found there in the past and so I can understand why there’s a desire to sort this area out. It was a really good initiative for the police and council to do the community survey together and so I thought I’d just turn up to help.

“As Swindon South’s new MP, I’m determined to be out and about across the town, to listen to the community and do all that I can to make sure the police and council are addressing local concerns about crime and anti-social behaviour.”