Resident revels in life in Penhill

Mrs Baker moved to the estate seven weeks ago from Wroughton, where she suffered from vandals and burglars.

The 42-year-old says her life has been transformed by friendly Penhill people.

And she has hit out at those who criticise the area.

Things got so bad in Wroughton that she asked for a council house swap. Now she lives in Fyfield Road.

"People in Wroughton thought I was mad asking to go and live in Penhill," she said.

"But ever since I moved here I have loved it.

"When I moved in everybody came and introduced themselves and I now know everyone in the street.

"There was one incident the second day I moved in when a big group of kids were playing football in the street.

"We asked them to go elsewhere and one boy kicked the ball at my neighbour, narrowly missing her head.

"We called the police and they were there in five minutes and nothing like it has happened since.

"The kids are wonderful, they come to my door and ask if I need anything doing.

"It reminds me of the days when I was a child."

Angie lives with her husband Jim, a railway technician, son Christopher, 14, and daughter Jenna, 17.

While living in Perry's Lane, Wroughton, Angie appeared in the Advertiser following a brush with vandals who destroyed her Christmas decorations.

The final straw came when thieves stole her son's £4,000 motorbike from their garden.

"I was burgled four times in Wroughton," she said.

"I had enough, you wouldn't think Wroughton would be like that.

"It was a difficult decision because my family are from Wroughton.

"But I had a Neighbourhood Watch letter through my door saying there had been 86 burglaries in Wroughton in the past three months."

Residents on the other side of Penhill have launched a campaign to rid their neighbourhood of vandals.

Householders in Avebury Road are determined to bring a sense community back to their street.

They have had some success and helped Swindon Council evict a family who were causing problems in the area.

Tamash Lal