The green light has been given for a new £23 million park in central Manchester and it’s the first park to built in the city centre in 100 years.
Mayfield Park – the 6.5-acre space that has been described as a “beautifully designed and safe urban oasis” and has already been touted as a “once-in-a-generation opportunity” – is part of a £1.4 billion development project in the city centre to transform the under-loved urban area between Manchester Piccadilly station and Mancunian Way, running along the River Medlock.
The government is to pledge £23 million to fund the building of the park.
Funds are said to be coming from the government’s £900m Getting Building Fund, which aims to increase jobs, skills and infrastructure in England in the wake of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, and similar city centre park projects that are also set to benefit from the fund are planned in Leeds and Sheffield.
The ongoing Manchester regeneration project is being led by Manchester City Council, Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM), the Department for Transport’s development company LCR, and property development company U+I.
It will also oversee the building of 1,500 homes, offices, a hotel, retail and leisure space, roads, cycleways and walkways in the city.
Mayfield Partnership
Sir Richard Leese, Leader of Manchester City Council, said: “The truly transformative potential of the Mayfield project should not be underestimated, and this funding will not just unlock the opportunity to bring forward the new city park, but in reality paves the way for the entire Mayfield project to be delivered over the next decade, which is without doubt one of the best connected sites in the region, directly adjacent to Piccadilly Train Station.”
“To provide a new green space in the city centre at the scale proposed is a once in a generation opportunity to bring life back to an underused part of the city centre, and create a real destination of choice. In fact, it wouldn’t be a stretch to consider the Mayfield site as a 24-acre new urban landscape, providing a green environment that accommodates significant buildings planned for the site – rather than the traditional idea of green space sitting adjacent to new development.”
“This is the sort of ambition we should be pitching for when we consider how we use urban space differently in the future to develop new green spaces for the benefit of our communities.”
“This investment is particularly welcome at a time when Manchester is focused on economic recovery following the pandemic [and] the Mayfield project illustrates a city determined to continue to grow and be successful for our residents, while generating significant employment opportunities.”
Mayfield Partnership
The announcement of the Getting Building Fund and the Mayfield Park green light has prompted a number of public bodies and grassroots organisations to say the coronavirus pandemic has highlighted the importance of outdoor spaces for communities.
There are now calls on the government to increase resources for existing parks following the decimation of local authority budgets over the past decade, as figures obtained from UK councils by Unison in 2018 found that more than £15 million had been cut from parks and green spaces budgets between 2016-17 and 2018-19.
Dave Morris, Chair of the National Federation of Parks and Green Spaces, said that the lack of funding for park services had been highlighted by the increased use of public green spaces during the national lockdown.
He said: “Under the current public health restrictions, there’s been a massive increase in the usage of public green spaces, but there hasn’t been a comparable increase in the resources that is put into managing and maintaining these spaces,”
“We need to ensure that the whole population have access to a quality local public green space within walking distance of where they live. In many areas there’s a need for additional green spaces”.
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Live football to be prescribed by some GPs to help treat patients with depression
Danny Jones
Live football looks set to be prescribed by a section of the NHS in an effort to try and help people suffering from depression.
As part of the experimental new wellbeing and mental healthcare initiative, GPs across the UK could soon be able to suggest watching football in person as part of their wider treatment plans.
While it may sound like a somewhat unorthodox approach, it’s sparked plenty of conversation on social media and is already gathering some steam up and down the country.
The scheme is being pioneered by Labour MP, Dr Simon Opher, the representative for Stroud, as well as Ecotricity owner and green industrialist, Dale Vince.
Today we’ve announced Football On Prescription. Football clubs up and down the country and up and down the leagues can take part in this – and I hope they will. Mental health is a big issue, as are loneliness and isolation. One of the superpowers of football is its inclusivity -… pic.twitter.com/OWNOag6Fcc
‘Prescribed footy’, to coin a somewhat jarring colloquialism, is set to be rolled out to relevant patients across the Gloucestershire region diagnosed with depression and some other mental health conditions.
Those on the receiving end of these prescriptions will be offered free tickets to watch local National League side, Forest Green Rovers (FGR), based in the town of Nailsworth.
Vince, who founded Ecotricity – formerly known as Renewable Energy Company – back in 1995, bought Forest Green back in 2010 and is just passionate about football and mental health as the push for clean energy and environmental causes.
Speaking to Greatest Hits Radio in an interview on Tuesday, 22 July, the 64-year-old Norfolk-born OBE said: “We just do the things that we see, that we think could be done, should be done, that will help; whether it’s helping our planet, our country – people here [in Gloucestershire]…
“When you attend football matches, particularly regularly, you find yourself a part of something, a part of a group of people with a common purpose. It’s a wonderful social experience that we think would be really good for people suffering from mental health problems.”
Despite some doubters and detractors questioning his motives online and in the media, he insists the sentiment is purely altruistic, and FGR hope to aligning itself with big causes like mental health, even making the first fully vegan-certified football kits ahead of the 2025/26 season.
He also went on to add, “We also won’t take adverts or sponsorship from gambling companies: they do great harm in our society.”
As for Dr Opher, he has continued to champion ‘social prescribing’ across his medical and political career, backing it as a viable alternative to common medication such as antidepressants for some individuals with mild-moderate depression.
The live football on presecption concept has been met with plenty of pushback online, including lots of discourse surrounding priorities and the NHS remaining underfunded, but only time will tell how well these early trials go.
What do you make of the idea of football being put forward as an aid for depression and do you think it should be considered by the NHS at large?
Rochdale will be hosting its FIRST EVER comedy festival later this year
Thomas Melia
There’s a comedy festival making its way to Rochdale for the first time ever, and it’s taking place over 10 days this autumn.
Rochdale is preparing for barrels of laughter, as the borough about to host a comedy festival for the first time ever later this year, as part of its events programme for being crowned Greater Manchester’s Town of Culture for 2025.
The lineup features some well-renowned names in the comedy world, many of whom have received awards and recognition along the way.
You can expect appearances from Lou Conran, who features as a regular support act for Sarah Millican, Tez Ilyas, from ‘Man Like Mobeen’, and TV comedy legend Mick Miller.
There’s even some Britain’s Got Talent alumni in the form of last year’s finalist Alex Mitchell and 2017 semi-finalist Jonny Awsum.
Tez Ilyaz and Lou Conran are just two of the acts listed for Rochdale Comedy Festival / Credit: Supplied
The lineup also includes Robin Ince, co-host and creator of Sony Gold Award winning BBC Radio 4 series The Infinite Monkey Cage, and a whole host of stand-up acts who are all gearing up ready to make Rochdale giggle.
If you’re after pursuing a comedy career of your own, you’re in luck as, The Frog and Bucket performer Dave Williams will be on hand to teach you some of the skills he’s learnt after 25 years in comedy.
“Us northerners are famous for our sense of humour and there’s a big appetite for comedy,” commented Councillor Sue Smith, who is the cabinet member for communities and co-operation at Rochdale Borough Council.
Rochdale Comedy Festival has an array of comedians taking part including Jonny Awsum and Mick Miller / Credit: Supplied
“I’m happy to see Rochdale Comedy Festival launching during our year as Greater Manchester Town of Culture.
“It will bring together communities and give new comedians a chance to shine.”
So whether you’re in need of a cheer up, or you’re a comedy aficianado, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to crack a smile at Rochdale Comedy Festival, as it’s happening across 10 days this September and October.
Rochdale Comedy Festival is taking place from 26 September through to 5 October in various venues across the Greater Manchester borough- with tickets soon to be releasedHERE.
Featured Images – Supplied (via Publicity Pictures) / Unsplash
Emily Sergeant -
5th August 2020 
