WORK has finally started on removing 18 years worth of rubbish and debris from the crumbling Mechanics' Institute.

Workers with Swindon-based removal firm The Man With A Van shifted tonnes of rubbish including logs, brushwood, beer cans, furniture, rotten floorboards and used syringes from the 149-year-old Grade II* listed building in Emlyn Square.

The work has sparked talk that the new, but as yet unknown, owners of the building a London-based property firm - is clearing the way for a detailed planning application for the former railway workers' community centre.

The work allowed passers-by a rare glimpse inside the building, which is one of a handful to feature on the English Heritage Register of Buildings at Risk.

The grand entrance foyer and marble staircase were clearly visible as the front entrance of the building stood open.

And further inside people were able to catch a glimpse of the breathtaking main hall, which was formerly used as a reading room, and its impressive curved ceiling.

One worker, who did not want to be named, said: "Over the years this place has just been neglected and because of that there is a mountain of rubbish inside the building.

"We found logs, brushwood, broken glass and syringes littering the floor and it's a mess. It looks like it's been used by squatters and as a drugs den."

Last month the Evening Advertiser exclusively revealed that a private London-based property company had bought the Mechanics' for an undisclosed fee from Mountmead Limited.

It is understood the developer wants to restore the building for a variety of uses, including part-residential. And it could even become the new home of the town's central library, although many believe it is too small.

But first the company needs to undertake around £300,000 worth of urgent works to protect the building against the elements for the first time in almost two decades. Currently windows on all sides of the Mechanics' are smashed letting in the wind and rain.

Inside graffiti of all colours and varying degrees of obscenity adorn the walls of the once-bustling building.

Martha Parry, chairwoman of the New Mechanics' Institute Preservation Trust, who has campaigned to bring the building back into community use, fought back tears as she stepped inside the Mechanics' for the first time in seven years.

She said: "It breaks my heart to see the building in the state it is and I was close to tears when I saw the condition of the main hall."