A derelict on a “premier” Swindon road has shown the first sign of attention after years of being unoccupied.

It comes after the owner of Oxford House, on Victoria Road was given a deadline of the end of August to begin repairs, or else the council will do them and charge the owner.

The house has had large amounts of weeds which were growing outside the house removed in a first suggestion that work may now have begun.

Meanwhile, the vegetation removal strips bare the poor state of the house, still covered in graffiti, with smashed and boarded-up windows and holes in the tiling.

It may come as a relief to neighbour, Chris Evans, who has expressed his frustration owning a house next to what he calls an “eyesore” for twenty years.

A neighbour, Agne, said: “It has become some sort of like freakish attraction for people to have a laugh and point at. The council needs to get involved.”

The council has confirmed that they have been involved, serving the owner a Section 215 order - this instructs a private landlord owner to clean up a property or potentially face a fine. 

A Swindon Borough Council spokesperson previously advised: “Bringing long-term empty homes back into use is often a very complicated and lengthy process.

“We always try to work with the owners of empty properties in the first instance to bring them up to standard with a view to them being occupied.”

If they fail, the council can clean up the house themselves and charge the owner for the cost.