A huge change is coming to Oldham

A massive swathe of land separating unique parts of the borough – Royton and Shaw to the west, Moorside to the east and Derker to the south – could soon be turned into a whole new series of neighbourhoods.

Once designated greenbelt land, Broadbent Moss and Beal Valley have now been freed up for development by a controversial Greater Manchester housing scheme: Places for Everyone.

The scheme, aiming to bring 11,500 new homes to Oldham to help tackle the housing crisis, has been a divisive buzzword in the borough since its adoption last year.

Now, developers are moving forward with one of the scheme’s biggest projects in Oldham: bringing 1,500 new homes, a new town centre and three football pitches worth of warehousing space to the 169 acres of green space that cuts through the borough. The plans include a proportion of affordable housing, plenty of green space and sports facilities.

With the developer quintet Casey, Grasscroft Property, Barratt Redrow, Kellen Homes, and Wain Homes seeking public opinion about their plans in the coming weeks, the Local Democracy Reporting Service went out to speak to people on the ground about how the plans have landed.

“I can’t believe it,” Phillip Garforth (pictured above), said. The 86-year-old pensioner had never heard of the plans – despite his front door directly facing the plot of land where it’s all due to take place. From his courtyard, you could be forgiven for thinking you were in the middle of a countryside village, with a lush green field stretching out to the horizon. Gesturing nervously to his view, he added: “Will they cut down my trees?”

Phillip, who’s lived next to Beal Valley for 30 years, claimed the site had once been home to chicken pens, and later been used as a public green space for years until it was fenced off. He was not happy about the plans – but also slightly impressed.

“Someone’s gotta have big money to be building a development that size,” he said.

But while many locals agreed it was ‘a shame’ to lose out on their green vista, most acknowledged it was ‘really needed’.

“People need places to live,” local mum Jade Veevers, 42, said. “I’m probably a bit biased because I live in one of the new-builds. People weren’t happy when they were built [three years ago] either, but we’re really pleased with it. Young families need somewhere to live.

“And I know some people aren’t happy about losing the green space. But we’ve still got this park here,” she said, gesturing to Heyside Park.

But Sue Warburton (pictured above), 73, out walking her ten-year-old dog Ruby, noted it was a ‘balance of needs’ between creating new homes and making sure locals are not overwhelmed by change.

Sue said: “When I moved here in 1968, Royton was a village. The kind of butcher, baker, you name it, a proper little chocolate box village. Now it’s a town. They’ve already built so much in that time.

“How many more houses are they going to build?”

She was particularly worried about the roads between Shaw and Royton, which already get overwhelmed by traffic, especially during rush hour. “If they build those houses, it’s inevitable that it’s going to get worse,” the former teacher and quilting expert claimed.

And highways aren’t the only local infrastructure already struggling to cope with demand, according to locals.

“There’s huge pressure now on school places and GPs,” another Royton mum Alison, 48, said. “I’ve worked with developers in the past. I know the promises they make to get things over the line – but I won’t believe it until I see it.”

The developer quintet has indeed pledged to pitch in to improve local infrastructure – with plans to either build a new school, or make a substantial financial contribution to local education. And they intend to support the building of a new tram stop and park & ride in the area – most likely at Cop Road, on the existing line between Derker and Shaw.

The new tram stop was universally welcomed by locals the LDRS spoke to.

“It’s really needed,” another local mum said. “It would take pressure off the roads. Where I live, I’m right in the middle between the two stops, and it’s too far to walk to either. It’s a real pain.

“I think less people would rely on their cars if there was a handier way to get into Manchester and Oldham.”

The verdict on the new development is certainly mixed. But there’s no doubt from locals it would create a major change to the feel of the area – which is currently characterised by its verdant surroundings.

It’s a question of need. With more than 7,000 people on Oldham’s housing waiting list and young families increasingly priced out of their local areas as property prices sky-rocket, even 1,500 new homes – to be built over 15 years – can seem like a drop in the ocean.

Either way, the project won’t go ahead before Oldham locals have had their say, which could help shape some aspects of the plans. A public consultation is currently underway, with residents invited to leave their thoughts online, or attend an in-person session at St. Anne’s Rugby Club in Higginshaw on Monday, July 14.