A MARKETING strategy is being launched by Swindon council in a bid to save the town's flagship museum STEAM.

The £26,000 strategy has been brought in to attract more visitors to the railway museum, which at the moment will have to be subsidised by the council by nearly £500,000 to survive.

It includes providing more signage on the site, costumed leafleting of the designer outlet village, marketing a major half term event in February, inserting leaflets in free newspapers across the South West, and extending radio advertising.

It was originally thought that the museum, which opened in June, would only need a subsidy of £97,000, but now an extra £376,000 is needed to keep it running.

Leading councillors will be discussing the mark-eting plan at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday.