ISABEL Field reported in the Evening Advertiser on February 8 that the development of the old post office site in the centre of Swindon would be at least 40 per cent housing, with a number of shops probably dominating the front of the site.

In view of the number of houses which Swindon is supposed to find room for, why isn't 100 per cent of the site set to be allocated to housing?

Is there a need for more shops in the centre of town?

In the same edition of the paper Graham Carter wondered what attracted people to the writing of Richard Jefferies.

Surely it is the countryside which he was motivated to write about which people find attractive; the countryside around Coate Water.

Researchers at Reading University show getting out into open green space is vital in reducing the stresses of modern life. Why not leave the green space in and around Coate Water Country Park for recreation and build houses in the centre of town?

Pat Crabb

Turnball, Chiseldon

Swindon