Manchester‘s first new park in the heart of the city centre for more than 100 years is officially set to open to the public this week.
It’s been a long journey to get here, but Mayfield Park is finally becoming a reality.
Over the last 18 months, the vast and mostly-derelict former industrial site next to Piccadilly Station has been transformed into what project developers are calling a “stunning, accessible, and varied” green space for everyone who visits the city centre to enjoy.
Mayfield Park has been more than six years in the planning, design, and delivery, and once it officially opens this week, local residents, visitors, and communities across the region will have access to a green oasis and beautifully-landscaped river walkways.
The realisation of the ambitious project comes after the UK government pledged £23 million of investment from its Getting Building Fund to Mayfield Park – which is one of the largest investments in any single project.
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Delivered through Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), developers say this investment is part of the government’s strategy to support “shovel ready schemes” that will help to drive economic recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Manchester’s first new city centre park for more than 100 years is officially opening this week / Credit: Studio Egret West
Mayfield Park’s main entrance on Baring Street will officially be opened to the public at 12:30pm this Thursday 22 September by Leader of Manchester City Council, Bev Craig.
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From then on, it will be open from dawn until dusk, seven days a week.
“September 22 is a momentous day for Mayfield, and Manchester,” said Martyn Evans – the Creative Director at U+I, which is the regeneration company leading the Mayfield development on behalf of the Mayfield Partnership.
“The greatest cities in the world offer a true blend of amazing culture, great architecture and green space.
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“Manchester is one such city and Mayfield Park adds a significant piece of new, family-friendly, inclusive green space to the city centre.”
It's the date you've all been waiting for: 22.09.2022 🌱
Ahead of the ribbon-cutting grand opening ceremony this Thursday, Cllr Bev Craig – Leader of Manchester City Council – commented: “There are some projects that feel so momentous in the development story of our city that we look forward to them with great anticipation [and] Mayfield Park is one of those developments.
“A project that has true transformational potential for this part of our city.
“It’s with excitement then that we can look ahead to the official opening of the city centre’s first public park in 100 years later this week.
“We know the massive health and well-being benefits that green spaces can have for our residents and increasing access to parks for our residents is a key priority for us.”
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Mayfield Park is gearing up to be a “stunning, accessible, and varied” green space for all / Credit: Martin Moss (via Natural England)
Cllr Craig also added that Mayfield also represents “a significant economic boost for Manchester”.
She continued: “The partnership has shopped local when procuring contractors to make sure that employment opportunities have benefited local companies and local people first.
“During the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, it’s this type of development that provides the jobs that our residents need.
“And it makes sure Manchester people continue to share in the success of our city.”
Featured Image – Studio Egret West
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Manchester Airport issues update for anyone flying today after hundreds of cancellations yesterday
Emily Sergeant
Manchester Airport has issued an update for anyone catching a flight today after hundreds of cancellations yesterday.
In case you hadn’t heard, hundreds of flights at several major UK airports – including Manchester Airport – were disrupted by a technical fault at air traffic control provider National Air Traffic Services (NATS) yesterday (8 September 2026), with the incident grounding planes and resulting in numerous cancellations.
According to Flightradar24, more than 1,000 flights were cancelled nationwide, and many passengers were told to expect disruption for the rest of the day.
One of the worst-affected airlines was said to be Ryanair, with around 65,000 passengers affected by the cancellations and delays.
Manchester Airport issued its first statement addressing the matter at 3:15pm yesterday, stating: “We are aware of an issue affecting NATS’ air traffic control service at UK airports, which may result in delays to some departing flights from Manchester Airport today.
“Passengers due to travel are advised to check the latest status of their flight with their airline. We will continue to monitor the situation and share further updates as more information becomes available.”
Now, although the issue has been resolved, Manchester Airport has issued further statements informing anyone travelling today what they can expect.
The airport started off by saying that it is ‘operating as normal’ today, but that passengers are advised to ‘check with their airline for the latest information’.
“A full flight schedule is expected to operate [today] but the airport may be busier due to rescheduled flights,” it added.
Passengers were then thanked for their ‘patience and understanding’ over the past 24 hours.
Featured Image – Ivan Shimko (via Unsplash)
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Hundreds of staff at four Greater Manchester hospitals to strike AGAIN next week
Emily Sergeant
Another round of strikes has been called at a handful of major Greater Manchester hospitals.
Amid ongoing disputes following the first set of strikes at the end of last month, it has now been announced that more than 350 Northern Care Alliance Foundation Trust (NCA) employees – including nurses, clinical support workers and housekeepers – who are members of the union UNISON will once again walk out for three days next week.
According to the union, the dispute centres on the NCA’s use of an outside agency called NHS Professionals (NHSP) to manage overtime.
When covering staff shortages, workers are entitled to time-and-a-half pay – however in some cases, staff earn less than they would on a normal shift, and some have even been missing out on more than £80 per shift, the union added.
Operating theatre staff were previously on picket lines in June, and although an option to resolve the row was initially tabled by NCA bosses, this has now fallen through.
Hundreds of staff at four of Greater Manchester’s hospitals are set to strike next week / Credit: Stephen Andrews (via Unsplash)
This means that staff at Salford Royal Hospital, Royal Oldham Hospital, Rochdale Infirmary, and Fairfield Hospital in Bury are walking out next week on Monday 14, Tuesday 15, and Thursday 17 September.
The union’s North West regional organiser, Kevin Dolan, said the trust had given ‘no indication’ that it’s willing to re-enter negotiations, adding that operating theatre services were ‘chronically under-staffed’ and staff were choosing to work extra shifts to cover shortages.
Ahead of the August strikes, the trust declared a critical incident to help it secure extra support and keep urgent surgery running, while also announcing that some procedures would have to be postponed.
Understandably, some disruption is expected at each of the hospitals on strike days.
But Gertie Nic Philib, who is the chief people and strategy officer at the Northern Care Alliance, said that the trust will do ‘everything we can to minimise the impact on patients’ and ‘maintain high standards of care and quality at all times.’
“We also have contingency plans in place for emergency situations,” they concluded.
Emily Sergeant -
20th September 2022 
