News

Green light given for new train station in Greater Manchester town without one for 60 years

A new era is on the way.

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 1st May 2025

The green light has been given to build a new train station in a Greater Manchester town that’s been without one for 60 years.

It’s been a whopping six decades, but the residents of Golborne will soon be able to hop on a train out of there, and that’s because a planning application to connect the Greater Manchester town, in the Wigan borough, that was submitted back in November of last year has been approved by Wigan Council.

This means connectivity is finally one step closer to becoming reality.

In case you didn’t know, Golborne currently has no direct bus, train, or tram services to Manchester, while the wider area is the largest and most-populous area in Greater Manchester not connected to the rail network.

The application includes plans for a new accessible two-platform rail station, including step-free access throughout with a footbridge across the tracks and lifts to both platforms, a new hourly service between Wigan and Manchester Victoria, and onwards to Stalybridge, an improved town centre car park, and also new walking and cycling links to the town centre.

ADVERTISEMENT

According to Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM), the Golborne station scheme forms part of a wider ambition to bring eight commuter lines into the Bee Network by 2028 – of which ‘significant investment’ has been put into.

A CGI image showing an aerial view of the proposed Golborne train station / Credit: TfGM

The planning approval milestone will also help to boost access to jobs and opportunities for people both in the town and in the wider Wigan borough.

ADVERTISEMENT

Now that plans have been approved, this means TfGM, Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) and Wigan Council, working with Government, will now develop a full business case and detailed design throughout this year.

To deliver this work, TfGM has appointed Golborne-based engineering firm Murphy to develop the final station designs.

Read more:

Subject to approval from the Government, work to make the Golborne station vision finally become a reality will begin in 2026, and it’s hoped that the first trains will stop there in 2027.

Featured Image – TfGM

News

Global sportswear brand PUMA to open new UK HQ in £87m Manchester development

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant No.3 Circle Square CGI

PUMA is set to open its new UK headquarters right here in Manchester.

It has been announced that the global sportswear brand has agreed a 20,000 sq ft lease of cutting-edge workspace in what is turning out to be one of the city’s most exciting destinations for technology, digital innovation, and creative businesses, Circle Square. 

Set to take shape on the Oxford Road Corridor, PUMA’s new HQ will be in the £87 million development being brought forward by Bruntwood SciTech – which is a joint venture between property developers Bruntwood, L&G (Legal & General), and Greater Manchester Pension Fund.

No.3 Circle Square, which is where PUMA will be calling home, forms the latest phase of the neighbourhood’s ‘masterplan’, offering 15 floors of new workspace focused on innovation businesses.

According to developers, the building is currently finalising construction and will open this summer. 

PUMA may already have an existing small presence in Manchester, but this move sees the brand relocate its UK HQ from London to Manchester.

The new Manchester HQ will be home to the company’s sales, marketing, merchandising, finance, people and operations, and direct to consumer departments.

PUMA says its new Manchester base will allow it to work side-by-side with existing forward-thinking and disruptive businesses and institutions that are already located at the Circle Square campus, and in the wider city centre, and provide it with new opportunities to collaborate and innovate as it continues to focus on innovation and advancing performance.

The location will also put PUMA on the doorstep of the city’s world-leading academic institutions too, giving it access to Manchester’s top STEM and creative talent in the city.

“The move to Circle Square and state-of-the-art facilities on offer forms a key part of our strategy for providing PUMA’s employees with a first class working environment with top facilities and amenities,” commented Lucynda Davies, who is PUMA’s UK Managing Director, as the new UK HQ was announced this week.

Read more:

“Being surrounded by such a strong line up of industry was an important factor, and to find somewhere in the heart of Manchester’s thriving tech community is exactly what we hoped for.

“We’ve already experienced many of the gains that a thriving city like Manchester affords… and now, through our new UK HQ, we look forward to further integrating ourselves in the city’s innovative community.”

Featured Image – Bruntwood SciTech

News

25,000 free footballs are being given away across the UK

Danny Jones Danny Jones Barlcays bank giving 1000 free football across the UK

A total of 25,000 free footballs are up for grabs this month as part of a new scheme from Barclays, who are giving them away to mark a special anniversary.

The British multinational universal bank, which boasts over 850 branches and more than 48 million customers worldwide, has been supporting the beautiful game for a quarter of a century now and has been the primary Premier League sponsor since the 2001/02 season.

Approaching 25 years helping fund and promote English football, they’ve come up with a new initiative to celebrate, simply called the ‘Lost Ball Project‘.

We’ve all seen scenes like these before.

barclays free footballs
lost ball project
Credit: Barclays (supplied)

Tapping into the national and generational memory of losing a ball to a pond, up a tree, over a fence or on a roof and so on, Barclays are making up for those heartbreaking little losses – one ball at a time.

Lost Ball will see the bank give away 25k footballs across the UK, with Barclays customers able to claim a free ball for themselves or someone else who has lost theirs.

Already up and running, the scheme is off to a flyer and free footies will be available until Thursday, 22 May, so we wouldn’t wait around.

The bank has played an integral role throughout the British football pyramid for decades now, sponsoring to only the Premier League but also the WSL, Barclays Women’s Championship; the Northern Irish Women’s Football Association, Scottish Women’s Championship and the Scottish Women’s League One

They’ve even put together this emotive, albeit a bit tongue-in-cheek video:

Excellent song choice.

As they put it, the mission of the Lost Ball Project is simple: “Let’s keep the nation playing the beautiful game. Because there’s no football without grassroots football.”

In addition to backing established leagues, they have continued to support the country’s footballing community at large, especially in terms of the women’s game.

For instance, the Barclays Girls’ Football School partnership with The FA has seen the number of participating schools rise from 3,000 in 2019 to 20,000 in 2024, helping more than 2.5 million schoolgirls access football.

Important work done from the ground up.

Credit: Supplied

Barclays’ Group Head of Sponsorship, Tom Corbett, said in a statement: “We are immensely proud of our pioneering work and funding to grassroots football over the past 25 years.

Giving away 25,000 balls to replace our customers’ ‘Lost Balls’ means they will never be without the one thing you need to be able to play the game we’ve supported at Barclays for all these years.”

If you bank with the group, you can find out how to claim your free football HERE.

We quite fancy a kick around now.

Read more:

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — Barclays (supplied)

More News

Andy Burnham charity football match

Manchester

Andy Burnham set to join legendary Manc DJ and ex-England internationals in a charity football match

Audio

Music venue charity issues ‘shocked’ statement ahead of impending Manchester closure

Person getting an injection

News

NHS rolls out five-minute ‘super jab’ to treat 15 different types of cancer

Audio

Clint Boon takes us around Manchester's iconic Deaf Institute

Eats

We go meatballs deep with Mira's traditional Neapolitan sandwiches