Swinton

Swinton is an established family-orientated area which is on the up.

Economically, employment in the area is substantial, and is spread across a range of sectors. The town is the administrative centre for the city council, and its established industrial areas are home to a number of companies serving local markets. Swinton provides good connectivity to major centres of employment and, comparatively within Salford, local schools perform at the top end. Swinton also has a number of fantastic greenspaces and parks that make this a highly sought-after area.

The town is part of the Swinton and Pendlebury neighbourhood area with its own dedicated Neighbourhood Management team.

A vision for Swinton’s future

Salford’s town centres are important to the city’s future. They provide employment for local people, retail and leisure opportunities, homes, a sense of community, and a place for local people to interact. However, it is well known that town centres are changing and that they need to adapt and reposition themselves so that they can thrive and meet the needs of the local communities.

Despite Swinton’s many strengths, it faces similar challenges to other towns. The shopping centre and other buildings in the town centre are dated and in need of investment. Demand for local housing has grown by 23% in the last five years, but there is a lack of high-quality family and affordable housing in the right locations in the area.

Swinton is home to the city’s Civic Centre, and the council is committed to the area continuing to be the heart of Salford’s democratic function. In support of that, the city council has been reviewing future working practices and its property requirements, with a view to shaping and modernising its delivery model. 

During 2022 we asked people to tell us what they thought about Swinton and what sort of future they want to see for the town, over 550 people took part in that visioning work.

• An overwhelming majority of those who shared their views saw Swinton as a good place to live and bring up a family - somewhere friendly, with a strong sense of community.
• People valued their local green spaces, but strongly felt that there needed to be more investment in the town centre, and a plan to tackle empty buildings and shops.
• Overall, people felt that Swinton needed to be a more vibrant place, with more going on - and more reasons for people to visit and spend their leisure time there.

What happens next?

The Swinton Vision was shaped by a series of discussions with local stakeholders, including residents and businesses – we want those relationships and conversations to continue. If you’d like to be involved in shaping the future of Swinton, please email us at swinton@salford.gov.uk

The vision is just the first step of the journey, the next is to appoint a developer partner who can take this vision and help shape it, through ongoing consultation and engagement with the community, into a framework and plan for Swinton that will guide future investment.  

It’s clear that Swinton has plenty to celebrate, but it also has the potential to be one of the best places to live in Greater Manchester. One of the recommendations that came out of the Swinton Vision engagement was to develop an events and animation programme for the town centre.

Swinton Sounds, a brand-new free event, bringing a weekend of pop-up music and entertainment across the town centre is a trailblazer for that events programme, and there’ll be more to come over the next 12 months.

If you’d like to be kept up to date with what’s happening in Swinton, please get in touch at swinton@salford.gov.uk

This page was last updated on 31 May 2023