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.
ADVERTISEMENT
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.”
ADVERTISEMENT
“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.”
ADVERTISEMENT
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”.
News
Salford Red Devils granted another adjournment over unpaid debts
Danny Jones
Salford Red Devils have been given one more adjournment and yet another stay of execution, being given another two weeks to find the money to cover their unpaid debts.
The local rugby league side, which has been wrapped in all manner of struggles both on and off-pitch over the past year or so, reportedly needs to pay around £700,000 to HMRC alone and still owes roughly £5 million in total to various creditors.
To no surprise, regular matchgoers, neutrals and even rivals alike have expressed their continued disappointment with the club, mainly at the lack of transparency and clarity from the organisation throughout this long, drawn-out process.
This is coming from a wire fan but no club deserves to be left in the dark even longer than they already have done it’s nothing but a disgrace to the sport of rugby those owners and the court should be ashamed of themselves.
Updating fans on social media, this is all the information they have communicated at this time: “Salford Red Devils can confirm that HMRC have granted the club a two-week adjournment, providing additional time in which to secure the necessary funds.
“We would like to reassure supporters that we are working tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure a positive resolution. Further updates will be shared as soon as possible.”
It’s worth noting that the current owners have reiterated that they inheited around £3m in existing debt before they took over the club, but assurances over their own investments have still come to nothing; meanwhile, with many still waiting on wages, players and staff alike have now left.
Having been propped up by loan players and emergency loans, the team is now closer to a skeleton crew than it is an outfit capable of competing in the premier division.
Either way, the outrage remains and is only growing stronger. One user wrote on X: “A good approach by them if they was legit would be to engage and bring in The 1873 to bridge the communication black hole (they created).
“The problem with that is if they did it would expose them for what they are… Extortionists using the club as a vehicle.”
More alarm bells were raised recently when assistant coach and Krisnan Inu – who was also director of the company set up to take over the business – withdrew himself from a key position behind the scenes.
Speaking of The 1873, the outspoken supporters trust took no time at all in issuing a response of their own, adding: “The judge presiding over today’s case has adjourned by 14 days. This adjournment has dragged the uncertainty on even longer.
“Every delay makes planning for 2026 harder and keeps the club stuck in limbo when it desperately needs clarity and direction.
“The fans, the players and the future all deserve better — The 1873.”
You can see the rest of their statement in full down below, but for now, what do you make of this seemingly neverending saga, Salfordians?
‘Christmas chaos’ on the cards as Manchester tram drivers vote on staging strike action next month
Emily Sergeant
There could be major disruption to festive travel in Greater Manchester next month, as hundreds of tram drivers are currently voting on whether to strike.
Almost 320 tram drivers are being balloted over working conditions and fears around fatigue.
The drivers – who are members of the union, Unite – all work for KeolisAmey Metrolink Limited at the Warwick Road South and Queens Road depots in Manchester – and they operate trams on all routes in Greater Manchester.
As it stands, the drivers’ shift patterns currently mean they have to work 450 hours over a 12-week period, which results in some having to work 50 hours on, followed by just two days off, then back into another 50-hour work pattern.
Drivers also have fewer rest days compared to all other operational departments, and this is said to be causing safety concerns around fatigue.
‘Christmas chaos’ is on the cards as Manchester tram drivers are currently voting on staging strike action next month / Credit: TfGM
Drivers say they concerned about operating heavy vehicles while exhausted and unable to have proper breaks, but after raising the issue with management, Unite has been told there is ‘no funding available’ to support any ‘meaningful’ improvements to working patterns.
Instead, management has asked drivers to start work earlier – which Unite says is only ‘adding insult to injury’.
The ballot is set to close on 11 November, and if drivers vote in favour of industrial action, strikes could then begin in late November, causing widespread cancellations and delays throughout the region during the busy festive shopping period – particularly coinciding with Manchester’s world-famous Christmas Markets, known for attracting millions of visitors to the city each year.
“Any strike action will cause a great deal of disruption but it is entirely the fault of Metrolink, which is not taking the issue of driver fatigue seriously,” commented Unite Regional Officer, Colin Hayden.
Emily Sergeant -
5th August 2020 
