Residents in even more areas of Greater Manchester will soon start to see little robots roaming the streets as they deliver Co-op groceries.
It comes after a recent trial scheme has been hailed so “successful” that it’s now been extended.
In case you’re not quite in the loop, back in March of this year, supermarket retailer Co-op grabbed headlines as it announced an extension of what was an already-ongoing partnership with Starship Technologies, and joined forces with Trafford Council to bring autonomous grocery deliveries to residents in Sale and Timperley.
Before then, the little robots were already a familiar – and initially confusing – sight to those living in Milton Keynes, Northampton, Bedford, Cambridge, and Leeds, but they soon became regular visitors to the streets of our region.
But now, they’re set to roll out to a handful of other local neighbourhoods.
A scheme that brought autonomous delivery robots to an area of Trafford is being extended.
The robots were so successful in Sale and Timperley that Trafford Council and partners are saying "roll out" in Urmston, Flixton and Ashton-on-Mersey. pic.twitter.com/dSkS0rSgbi
Trafford Council has announced that after the trial proved to be such a hit with customers ordering from the two participating Co-op stores of Washway Road and Coppice Avenue, it has now agreed plans with Starship Technologies this week for the scheme to be extended to Co-op stores in three other areas.
Shoppers in Davyhulme and Flixton, Timperley Central, and Ashton upon Mersey, will soon be able to make the most of the innovative technology.
This means that, when residents place an order through the Starship food delivery app – which is available to download on both iOS and Android – fresh groceries will be picked from local Co-op stores and delivered directly to their door on demand, with delivery fees starting from just as little as 99p.
Robots are now delivering Co-op shopping to more areas across Greater Manchester / Credit: Co-op
Starship’s robots are battery-powered, lightweight, and travel at the speed of a pedestrian.
They use a combination of sensors, artificial intelligence, and machine learning to travel on pavements and navigate around any obstacles, while their computer vision-based navigation helps them map their environment to the nearest inch.
It’s estimated that the electric robots have already saved over 300 tonnes of CO2 from entering the atmosphere in the UK by replacing car journeys to and from the supermarket.
It comes after a “successful” trial scheme has now been extended / Credit: Starship Technologies
Trafford Council says the partnership extension shows how “committed” it is to helping the environment and reducing carbon emissions, with Cllr Stephen Adshead, who is Trafford Council’s Executive Member for Highways, Environmental and Traded Services, adding that he’s “delighted” the local authority has decided to extend the trial by a further six months and roll-out to more areas.
He continued: “The robots have [not only] reduced thousands of car journeys and are cutting emissions [but] they also come to the aid of the elderly and disabled who find it difficult to get to their local shops by bringing the items to their door.
“We are excited to be working with the Co-op and Starship Technologies to extend this initiative.”
Featured Image – Starship Technologies
News
Streamer AngryGinge ‘arrested and banned’ from Silvestone at the British GP
Danny Jones
Popular Manc influencer, ‘AngryGinge’, was arrested, fined and ultimately banned from Silverstone at this year’s British GP.
The Salford-born Twitch streamer, YouTuber and social media personality (real name Morgan Burtwhistle) was detained at the circuit after being arrested on suspicion of criminal damage.
Ginge recently starred in Soccer Aid 2025 and is a well-known face both on the internet and in the sporting world, regularly working in and around football, and is an avid Manchester United – even featuring in the club’s third kit launch video last year.
The 23-year-old and two other fellow streamers, ‘Chazza’ and ‘Samham’, were accused of criminal damage after sitting in an F1 car whilst recording around the Silverstone complex.
AngryGinge returned to streaming after being detained by police for 15 hours
The streamer and several friends were arrested for climbing into a display F1 car at the British Grand Prix pic.twitter.com/WDSYb6MVtj
“On Friday, July 4, NP received a report that a classic Formula 1 car on display at Silverstone Circuit during the British Grand Prix event had sustained several thousands of pounds worth of damage, which was alleged to have been caused by someone accessing the display stand and climbing into the vehicle.
“Officers carried out initial inquiries, and suspects were identified. Three men, aged 23, 25 and 27, were arrested on suspicion of causing criminal damage to a vehicle and taken into police custody.
“Following a thorough investigation into the circumstances of the incident, all three men were released with no further action.”
Burtwhistle went into more detail on the incident on socials, explaining that the trio were taken away in handcuffs and “locked up” for several hours – 15 hours, according to SamHam (Samuel Imie).
All three individuals deny causing any damage to the racecar, even despite users sharing clips from the livestream footage captured for the Red Bull online Content on the day that many argue incriminates them, or at least sounds like it – we’ll let you watch and decide for yourselves.
Ginge himself went on to detail that ridculousness of the situation, explaining how he was effectively detained for watching someone else climb into the vehicle.
He’ll be dining out in this one for some time, you can be sure of that.
He’s literally a brands dream isn’t he 😂 so quick and smart with it
Featured Images — Soccer Aid/angryginge13 (screenshot via Twitch)/Samham (via X)
News
Boxing legend Ricky Hatton is coming out of retirement after more than a decade
Danny Jones
Mancunian and British boxing legend Ricky Hatton MBE is coming out of retirement after more than a decade for his first competitive fight in 13 long years.
This is sure to be one to watch.
The Stockport-born and Hattersley-raised fighter first retired back in 2011, but did flirt with a comeback a year later in what turned out to be a one-off fight and defeat to 35-year-old Ukrainian welterweight, Vyacheslav Senchenko.
‘Hitman’ Hatton also got back in the ring for an exhibition match against Marco Antonio Barrera in 2022, enduring eight two-minute rounds after a decade away from fighting, but now he’ll be undertaking an official fight over in the United Arab Emirates.
Lacing up his gloves at 46 years old, Hatton will be facing fellow veteran Eisa Al Dah (same age), who was the first professional boxer in the UAE.
The ‘Pride of Hyde’ may have been out of the competitive sporting sphere for a while, but he’s still remained an active figure in the boxing world.
In addition to training his son, Campbell, who has followed in his father’s fighting footsteps, Hatton has continued to coach other young boxing talents from his gym in Tameside, including John Hedges and Chloe Watson.
Campbell, 24, has won 14 of his 16 fights, losing just twice since he began in 2021.
Meanwhile, his dad – who still boasts a record of 45 victories from 48 matches, 32 of which were by knockout – will be once again focusing on getting himself back in fighting shape for the Dubai bout.
The local athlete has done plenty to dispel the old jabs of ‘Ricky Fatton’ in recent times, mind you, having taken his talents as a once-promising young footballer to play in the Manchester Remembers charity match, as well as the aforementioned Barrera exhibition.
Set for this winter, Ricky Hatton will face fellow veteran Eisa Al Dah in a middleweight contest on Friday, 2 December, telling national media via video call in the recent press conference that confirmed he would be coming out of retirement: “What you’re trying to do there for boxing in Dubai is fantastic.”
Meanwhile, Al Dah added: “It will be a true fight, true action. And I will do my best, because everybody in the UAE and the Gulf, they will watch this fight. The place will be sold out, and it will be watched around the world.”
Will those Haymakers still hit like they used to? Well shall see before the end of the year.