THE County Ground has emerged as Adver readers' favoured spot for a £10m casino in Swindon.

As revealed in the Adver on Tuesday, council planners are considering six locations for a gambling complex which they claim would create 800 jobs and transform run-down areas of the town.

The Exchange development, near Fleming Way, the Promenade, along Princes Street, Sussex Square, the Gorse Hill district centre, the County Ground and the Abbey Stadium in Blunsdon are all possible sites.

An Adver phone and internet poll shows readers think the town's football stadium would be the best place to house a casino.

However, a poll earlier in the year, when the casino plan was first mooted showed that 75 per cent of readers are opposed to a casino coming to Swindon at all.

Outgoing council leader Mike Bawden (Con, Old Town and Lawn) says he is not surprised with the outcome of this week's poll.

Thirty-seven per cent of voters backed the County Ground with 30 per cent saying the Abbey Stadium was the ideal place.

The two possible sites in the town centre, which are the preferred choice of the casino companies, received little support, garnering just 19 per cent of the votes between them.

The Gorse Hill and Sussex Square spots got seven per cent of the votes each.

Swindon is among 41 local authorities in the running for one of 16 new casinos to be licensed nationally.

The complex would have up to 80 slot machines with £4,000 jackpots and cover 30,000 to 40,000 square feet.

It will be classed as a "small" casino, although such an establishment would be bigger than most of Britain's existing 125 casinos.

The council's official bidding document reveals they have already been in detailed talks with three casino operators Gambling International Plc, Stanley Casinos and Harbour House Casino Ltd.

Coun Bawden said the submission did not mean the council wanted a casino in Swindon but that it was keeping the option open.

"Obviously I'm very interested in the results of the poll. I was not particularly surprised about the order which the public has come up with," he said.

"I want to stress again that at this point in time there is no firm proposals for a casino in Swindon.

"Should the Government look favourably on a casino in Swindon then we would require a private organisation to come up with the necessary scheme and the funding of it."