Manchester Update

A major new agency designed to bring about the regeneration of East Manchester was launched at the end of October by Minister for Regeneration Hilary Armstrong. In a joint initiative by the City Council, the North West Development Agency and English Partnerships, The East Manchester Urban Regeneration Company will actively promote the area as a place to live, work and invest.

Chief Executive of the Agency is Marianne Neville-Rolfe, former head of the Government Office in the North West.

Chairman of the Board Sir Alan Cockshaw, who is also chairman of English Partnerships, said: “We are on the verge of a new chapter in history and together we will ensure East Manchester achieves its full potential.”

The cumulative impact of the regeneration programmes, already on the drawing board for East Manchester will result in more than £500 million of new investment. The Agency will co-ordinate and integrate individual initiatives, promote the positive re-use of strategic sites and assume responsibility for area wide masterplanning. It will also provide a strong and coherent investment framework to set the context for detailed regeneration projects.

Four teams have been shortlisted to work up their ideas for a Masterplan to shape the redevelopment of East Manchester over the next 10 to 20 years. They are David Lock Associates, Kohn Pederson Fox Associates/DTZ Pieda Consulting, Richard Rogers Partnership and Urban Strategies Inc/GVA Grimley. Following public consultation on their proposals a team will be selected to work with local residents and the business community to finalise a redevelopment masterplan and delivery programme. The winning formula will provide the framework for a multi-million pound transformation of the Region’s former industrial heartland

Beacons for a Brighter Future

The Beacons For a Brighter Future Partnership is a critical element in a long- term regeneration programme to be overseen by the Agency. A partnership between local residents, Manchester City Council and other key agencies, the voluntary sector and the private sector, it will allow for the right balance to be struck between people- based and physical investment ensuring problems are successfully tackled.

Opportunities such as Sportcity will also be harnessed to maximise benefit to the local community.

‘Beacons for a Brighter Future’ targets an area which has changed dramatically over the last 30 years – heavy industries which were the reasons for the areas success have shut down, leaving a legacy of high unemployment. Poor quality open space and a patchwork of housing, much of which is vacant or in poor condition, adds to the problem.

The five key strategic objectives of the Beacons Partnership are:
- improve the condition of housing
- increase the capacity of local communities
- enhance economic conditions
- tackle crime
- improve facilities and amenities

New Deal Means Great Deal for East Manchester

The Beacons for a Brighter Future Partnership has secured New Deal for Communities status for East Manchester – the first partnership to do so nationally.

The £51.7 million over a ten year period to comprehensively regenerate the areas of Beswick and Openshaw was announced by Government Minister Hilary Armstrong in November.

New Deal for Communities has been established by the Government to improve the most deprived areas of the country. There are four key areas which the programme will seek to address:
- tackling unemployment
- improving health
- tackling crime, and
- raising educational achievement

Manchester’s New Deal for Communities area covers Beswick and Openshaw in East Manchester, with a population of 11,231.

While Manchester has been identified as the third most deprived local authority area according to the Governments’ Index of Local Deprivation, Beswick and Openshaw rank among the most disadvantaged areas of the country. The complex nature of the problems call for an integrated approach to secure sustainable regeneration.

Announcing the funding Hilary Armstrong said: “It promises to deliver real and lasting change for the area and its community.”

The New Deal for Communities initiative will complement other regeneration funding that is being targeted in the East Manchester area.

A successful SRB Round 5 bid, approved in September 1999, has secured £25 million over seven years for the three East Manchester neighbourhoods of Beswick, Clayton and Openshaw. The SRB 5 scheme ensures those parts of Openshaw and Beswick excluded from the New Deal for Communities programme, due to restrictions in the size of the area, will be the focus of complimentary activity. The nearby neighbourhood of Clayton will also benefit from the initiative.

Although conditions in Clayton are not as severe as those found within the NDC area, the rate of decline is such that without early intervention it will become irreversible, seriously undermining the community’s future sustainability.

The £25 million from SRB Round 5 should attract around £33 million of additional private sector funding and more than £34 million of other public sector funding.

It is hoped this investment will create 320 jobs, support 85 new business start- ups, improve 3,150 houses and help 13,125 residents to benefit from 35 community safety initiatives.

Other recent initiatives announced for the area are the creation of an Education Action Zone with funding of £3m over three years and the securing of Surestart funding of up to £3 million providing support for families with children under 4 years old in Clayton