What people in Saddleworth think about election

More than 500 years ago, the houses of York and Lancaster were locked in a bitter series of civil wars over 32 years to control the English throne.

Violent battles and deaths in their thousands are now in the distant past and many years on from the Wars of the Roses, the so-called King in the North Andy Burnham has now headed south to Westminster. In a twist of fate, parts of historic Yorkshire and Lancashire will be joining together to choose his successor.

The parish of Saddleworth was historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire but in 1974 as part of a local government restructure, it was absorbed into the Greater Manchester region as part of Oldham where it remains to this day. Even when the area had that Yorkshire identity, it was ‘long talked of as the part of Yorkshire where Lancastrians lived’.

With voters set to go to the polls on July 30 to replace Prime Minister Andy Burnham as the Mayor of Greater Manchester, many people in the village of Uppermill would not know they too will be deciding.

A significant number of people who spoke to the LDRS said they did not know there was an election happening and if they did, they did not have much interest in it. Some said they did not believe a single campaign leaflet had come through the letterbox.

While some parts of the region are key targets, Saddleworth does not appear to be one of them. For people like Christine, there’s a reason why.
She said: “[Being part of Greater Manchester] doesn’t sit very well. It never has. It was the West Riding of Yorkshire and it was taken out. The stuff that we had then.

“I have lived here for 57 years and when we were in the West Riding, then everything got done. The leaves were swept from the paths in the autumn. We had officers down here.

“It was brilliant but as soon as we went over to Greater Manchester, poor relations we are here.”

She added: “I do think there should be more money spent up here for a start. We pay more council here than down in Oldham.
“We pay extra to live in Saddleworth but we do not get any extra amenities. There’s nothing for the youngsters.”

However not everyone feels the same way. Jenna Tett, who is ‘Saddleworth born and bred’, said: “It still feels part of Manchester but my Dad is very Yorkshire. Maybe it’s a generational thing.”

Roy Turner grew up in Middleton but has now been living in Uppermill for 15 years. He said: “It’s a lovely place to live. Most of my family have moved up here.

“Manchester it’s ideal because you can get on the train from Greenfield and that is about it. I don’t go in very often though. It’s an odd one. I will vote because I always vote but I haven’t seen any literature from the candidates, I have not seen any detail about who is who."

He added: “I think that is the issue. People think that about Oldham. They feel there is an unfair distribution on various projects that need doing. It’s very difficult to get any funding around here.

“The whole discussion around development is how it’s allocated. You have got so many levels of local democracy that people get fed up with it.
“You just hear excuses for things not being done and you just get more people being put in place.

“People can see it. Where is all the money going now? That is what the people are saying around here. You can’t get things done.
“Everybody now when you try to get something done delivering public services, it feels like talking to a brick wall.”

However for some though, more recent events are on their mind. While it has died down, the fire at Dove Stone Reservoir is continuing to burn after covering large areas of Greater Manchester in smoke for days.

Katie, from Greenfield, said this was a big concern for her, adding: “We have a memorial tree for my mother in law and it’s alarming we can’t get to it, how they can’t make it more secure?

“People are saying they might open it up later in the summer so for my partner, that is a challenge that we can’t get there.”