Plans have been revealed for a new 18-storey tower in Manchester city centre, complete with a rooftop pool.
The Alberton will be the latest development from Bruntwood, who want to build a ‘revolutionary’ workspace and leisure destination.
The £93m development would replace the existing Alberton House on St Mary’s Parsonage, the site of the first Manchester Gas Works.
Plans include a rooftop holistic wellness centre, which would house the UK’s highest workspace pool as well as a hydrotherapy vitality pool, hot and cold treatment rooms, a fitness studio, a yoga terrace, a physio room, and shower and changing facilities.
On the 17th floor, there’ll be a panoramic roof terrace with views across the city, and a food and beverage outlet.
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The Alberton. Credit: Supplied
The Alberton would be the flagship building for Bruntwood Works’ Pioneer programme
It’s being designed by EPR Architects, who are creating a ‘modern reimagining’ of Manchester’s Victorian cotton mills.
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The work on the site is set to begin later this year ahead of an early 2025 completion.
Taking place nearby, also within Manchester City Council’s St. Mary’s Parsonage Strategic Regeneration Framework (SRF), is the redevelopment of the grade-II listed Kendal Milne building, Bruntwood’s Blackfriars House, and King’s House, which is currently undergoing redevelopment.
The Alberton’s 17th floor roof terrace. Credit: Supplied
The plans propose the demolition of the existing Alberton House, which has been identified as an energy-inefficient 1960s office building.
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When complete, The Alberton’s ground floor will connect the Trinity Bridge walkway and Motor Square, with a hospitality offering across the entire floor including a restaurant, bar and coffee shop.
Completing the plans are a screening and cinema room, a flexible event space, a cycle hub with showers, and Brompton bike lockers, as well as the 17th floor roof terrace.
Ciara Keeling, CEO of Bruntwood Works, commented: “The Alberton is going to revolutionise workspace, not just in Manchester but across the UK. It is a development that supports integrating wellbeing into customer’s daily lives to encourage a positive work/life balance.
“This is evident in our plans to create a holistic wellbeing centre that will act as the focal point of the entire development, including a rooftop pool with panoramic views of the city.
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“We understand that the way we work and live has changed for the long-term, so we wanted to give our customers a space that suits their changing needs and helps to promote a working environment where they can thrive professionally, but also personally.
“Our Pioneer programme has always recognised the need to incorporate best-in-class wellness and amenity credentials within the workspace, and The Alberton will offer the pinnacle of this. We are proud to be able to deliver a world-class workplace and leisure destination to Manchester as it continues to compete on a global stage for inward investment.”
Featured image: Supplied
Property
Greater Manchester could be getting a new town under ‘ambitious’ Government housebuilding programme
Emily Sergeant
Greater Manchester could be getting a new town under an ‘ambitious’ proposed Government housebuilding programme.
Manchester Victoria North is one of seven new towns that have been proposed.
Named for consideration as part of what the Government is referring to as the most ambitious housebuilding programme in more than half a century, the locations of seven new towns have been revealed this week, and also include other northern locations like Leeds South Bank, as well as places in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, and Greenwich.
The Government says that the next generation of new towns are to be ‘built for the future from the ground up’.
They will create well-connected new communities with homes, jobs, schools, green spaces, and suitable transport links planned from the start.
Each proposed location is expected to deliver at least 10,000 homes – with several delivering 40,000 or more in the decades to come.
Greater Manchester could be getting a new town / Credit: Manchester City Council
All seven of the proposed new towns are set to be designed for modern everyday life, the Government insists – with neighbourhoods that people can easily get around without a car, incorporating shared green spaces and ‘vibrant’ high streets.
As part of the Manchester Victoria North proposals announced this week, at least 15,000 homes regenerating the heart of Greater Manchester are to be built, with a new Metrolink stop connecting residents to jobs across the city.
“People want real change,” explained Housing Secretary, Steve Reed. “They want homes they can afford, local infrastructure that works, and good jobs in thriving communities.
“Our next generation of new towns marks a turning point in how we build for the future.
“From the ground up, we’re planning whole communities with homes, jobs, transport links, and green spaces designed together, so we can give families the security and opportunities they deserve.”
Alongside the new towns consultation, the Government has also confirmed today that the National Housing Bank will launch on 1 April, backed by up to £16 billion of financial capacity and aiming to deliver over 500,000 new homes.
The Government has also confirmed additional support worth up to £400 million over the next decade for ‘subsidised products’.
Featured Image – James Feaver (via Unsplash)
Property
Altrincham named one of the UK’s best places to live in 2026 in The Sunday Times’ annual ranking
Emily Sergeant
A popular Greater Manchester town has been named among the UK’s best places to live by the Sunday Times in its annual ranking.
That’s right… it’s that time of year, once again.
The Sunday Times is known for pulling together a list of what it considers to be the most sought-after places to live in the UK every year, and 2026’s ranking has officially been published today – with dozens of locations across the country making up the comprehensive guide, and six of those coveted locations being right here in the North West.
The Sunday Times’s expert judges have visited all locations on the list, and assessed factors such as schools, transport, culture, broadband speeds, access to green spaces, the health of the high streets, and much more to devise the always-talked-about annual ranking.
Macclesfield in Cheshire, Eden Valley in Cumbria, Lancaster in Lancashire, and Aigburth in Liverpool are just some of the North West areas named by the publication in the 2026 list.
Altrincham has been named one of the best places to live in the UK / Credit: The Manc Group
A spotlight has also been shone on two Greater Manchester towns, and one of two has even been given the regional North West title… but which are they?
Where has taken the top spot as the best place to live in the North West for 2026, and is therefore one of the best places to live in the whole of the country? Well, that honour has been given to none other than Greater Manchester’s very-own Altrincham.
The publication described the Trafford town as ‘classy, cool and effortlessly comfortable’.
“Altrincham is a top-notch town brimming with independent businesses and big brands, and now it’s flying even higher,” The Sunday Times said.
The fact that co-working has now arrived on the high street thanks to the conversion of the old Rackhams department store, and that the town’s cultural and creative ‘cachet’ is also on the rise, have been highlighted as reasons as to why Altrincham has been chosen as the North West’s winner, as well its newly-flourishing fitness scene.
Of course, the town has also been praised for its transport links into Manchester city centre and across the region, as well as it being a great place for families thanks to the excellent local schools on offer.
Didsbury was the other Greater Manchester town chosen to represent the best of the North West – with the Manchester suburb described as being ‘stylish, solid, safe, and, yes, a little bit smug in parts… but that’s okay’.
Daisy Jackson -
14th July 2022 
