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Murder investigation launched after man falls from fourth-floor balcony in Salford

Investigating officers have also issued a public appeal.

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 13th August 2024

A murder investigation has been launched after a man was found to have fallen from a fourth-floor balcony in Salford.

Greater Manchester Police (GMP) confirmed that officers from its Salford District were called to reports that a man had fallen from a balcony on the fourth floor of Black Friar Court, in the neighbouring city, at around 8:42pm on Sunday night (11 August 2024).

A 57-year-old man was taken to hospital, but despite the best efforts of all emergency services involved, he was sadly pronounced dead.

GMP has confirmed a murder investigation has subsequently been launched.

While the enquiry is still said to be in the “initial phases”, and a scene remains in place whilst investigating officers conduct further enquiries, GMP has confirmed that a 37-year-old man and a 40-year-old woman have been arrested on suspicion of murder, and they remain in police custody for questioning.

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Although police have undertaken “extensive enquiries to understand how this man sadly lost his life” within the last 24 hours, a public appeal has also been issued.

Officers remain at the scene, and are speaking with residents and conducting extensive CCTV trawls, but are calling on members of the public who may have been in the area, or at the address, on Sunday 11 August to come forward.

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“We know the community will be concerned about this tragic death, and we share their concern,” admitted Detective Inspector David Ogden, from GMP’s Salford District.

“We’re appealing to anyone who has not yet spoken to us. Please don’t assume that what you know is already known to us. The smallest piece of information may be crucial to our investigation and towards getting answers for this man’s family.”

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Anyone with any information is asked to contact GMP on 101, quoting log 3044 of 11/8/24, or reporting it online by using the ‘report’ tool and LiveChat function on the GMP website – www.gmp.police.uk.

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Alternatively, you can contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Featured Image – GMP

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Consumer group urges Oasis and Ticketmaster to refund fans hit by ‘in demand’ ticket pricing

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant Oasis ticket prices revealed ahead of huge reunion tour. Credit: Publicity picture, Simon Emmett

Ticketmaster is being warned that its ‘in demand’ pricing system for Oasis tickets could be in breach of consumer law.

Which? is now calling on the Manchester band and the ticket website to refund fans.

In case you’ve been living under a rock, Oasis are reforming for a run of shows in the UK and Ireland next year, but the massively long-awaited reunion tour has faced controversy following Ticketmaster’s use of ‘in demand’ pricing – which came into effect when tickets to the gigs went on sale on Saturday 31 August.

Ticketmaster’s ‘in demand’ pricing is where prices surge if demand for tickets is high.

After waiting in a lengthy virtual queue, many Oasis fans had a nasty shock at the checkout when they found tickets were significantly more expensive than they’d expected them to be.

Now, consumer group Which? says it believes Ticketmaster’s lack of transparency around its ‘in demand’ pricing could have breached consumer law, and is calling on the company to “do the right thing” and refund the difference to fans who paid more than the expected face value for tickets.

Which? says it saw evidence that fans were shown one ticket price when they were queuing for tickets, only to have has that price taken away at the last second and replaced with a far higher – and unexpected – ticket price when the page reloaded.

In one example, the cost of standing tickets – which was originally advertised for £151.25 – had surged to £337.50 each, due to this ‘in demand’ pricing.

This meant that four standing tickets, which is the maximum amount of tickets one person could secure in one order, would have cost an eye-watering £1,400 once the service and order processing fees were included.

The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations (CPRs) protect consumers from unfair or misleading trading practices, and it’s this that Which? believes Ticketmaster’s lack of transparency around its ‘in demand’ pricing for the Oasis concerts could have breached, as many fans were not informed about the price increase until after they had tried to add cheaper tickets to their baskets.

“Under the CPRs, when advertising a product, traders must not mislead consumers with how prices are presented or leave out key pricing information that might be needed to make an informed decision about a purchase,” Which? said in a statement.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is also investigating whether Ticketmaster’s sale of Oasis tickets may have breached consumer law, and if this is found to be the case, this when would enable fans to seek refunds and compensation from both Ticketmaster, and Oasis themselves.

Oasis previously stated they had “no involvement” in the decision to implement dynamic pricing.

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When Which? contacted Ticketmaster, the company said: “We are committed to cooperating with the CMA and look forward to sharing more facts about the ticket sale with them.”

Featured Image – Simon Emmett

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Work commences on multi-million-pound scheme to build affordable and energy-saving homes in Oldham

Danny Jones Danny Jones

Ground has finally been broken on a new multi-million-pound scheme to build a slate of new affordable and energy-saving homes in Oldham.

Headed up by First Choice Homes Oldham (FCHO), the current development in the Hathershaw area is part of a wider strategy to deliver a total of 1,100 high-quality, sustainable properties in the borough and surrounding areas which was greenlit in 2020 and is estimated to run until 2026.

With increasing demand across the region, not to mention housing and cost of living crises across the country, FCHO has commenced work on the properties, enlisting Arca Construct Ltd as the main contractor and the project is estimated to be completed by summer 2025.

Construction work on the first 19 energy-saving and affordable Oldham homes is now well underway for the scheme, which is to cost around £4.5 million.

Credit: First Choice Homes Oldham (via supplied)

The Hathershaw developments include 16 three-bedroom houses along Belgrave Road and a further trio of three-bedroom homes over on neighbouring Thatcher Street.

Utilising an injection of £1.07m in funding from Homes England and a £285,000 Brownfield Housing Fund grant via Greater Manchester Combined Authority, the scheme involves transforming a former garage site into homes for affordable rent.

As part of FCHO’s green focus and sustainability targets set in its ‘Big Plan and Sustainability Strategy’, all the homes being created are also going to be eco-friendly as a priority.

Each property is being built to ensure the performance of materials that make up the building is maximised – known in the industry as a ‘fabric first approach.’

Moreover, with energy bills so challenging these days and Greater Manchester weather being what it is, each home will be highly insulated to ensure they are as warm and economical for customers as possible.

The housing association also includes a dedicated Homes and Neighbourhoods team to support homeowners once they’re all moved in.

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Better still, with high energy efficiency specs in mind, all 19 of these affordable Oldham homes are set to achieve Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) B, not only saving customers money but also helping reduce their overall carbon footprint.

FCHO’s Development Director, Joel Owen, said of work kicking off: “It is fantastic to see these energy-efficient and affordable homes starting to take shape. Not only do they complement our commitment to provide high quality and affordable homes to people in the communities we are based in and serve but also our work to have sustainable and energy-efficient housing stock.”

 Arca Construct’s Head of Construction, Nigel Lonsdale, added: “We understand the critical role First Choice Homes Oldham plays in providing affordable housing and are delighted to be working with them on this scheme.

“We pride ourselves on being a trusted partner, delivering exceptional results at competitive rates. Our membership in the Considerate Constructors Scheme and CHAS Elite underscores our commitment to quality and responsible construction.”

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Featured Images — Supplied

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