More than 100 green spaces across Greater Manchester have had new life breathed into them thanks to dedicated funding.
Thanks to community-led projects funded by Mayor Andy Burnham‘s Greater Manchester Green Spaces Fund, a total of 103 spaces throughout the region have now been transformed since 2022, and the latest round of the fund this year saw 17 successful projects awarded a share of more than £370,000, empowering community groups to make Greater Manchester greener.
Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) says these projects bring communities together, and also encourage local residents to get involved in nature recovery.
Residents have been able to get involved with everything from volunteering opportunities and building green skills, to learning how to grow their own food, maintain gardens and green spaces, and so much more.
OVER 100 PROJECTS FUNDED! 🥳 We are thrilled to announce that Round 5 of the Mayor of GM's #GreenSpacesFund resulted in 17 winners, bringing the total number of projects and groups funded across Greater Manchester to 103.
— Greater Manchester Environment Fund (@gmenvfund) October 4, 2024
A ‘Secret Garden’ next to a primary school in Bolton, and a COVID memorial garden in Stockport are just two of the successful projects to have benefited from funding in this latest allocation.
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Impressively, 22,015 trees and plants have also been introduced to the area since the Fund was started up in 2022, and more 100,000 Greater Manchester people have engaged with completed Green Spaces Fund projects after their transformations.
“It has become increasingly apparent over recent years that green spaces where nature can flourish are vital, not just for our local wildlife but our residents’ physical and mental health,” explained Mayor Andy Burnham.
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‘New life’ has been breathed into more than 100 community green spaces across Greater Manchester / Credit: Greta Hoffman (via Pexels)
“With more than a hundred projects, the Green Spaces Fund is making a huge difference to people’s lives and I’d like to thank each and every one of the brilliant community group members, volunteers, and local businesses that have got behind it and brought it to life.
“It’s a remarkable movement, helping make Greater Manchester a greener, fairer place to live for all.”
The Green Spaces Fund is managed by the Greater Manchester Environment Fund (GMEF) – which is said to be a ‘pioneering body’ created in partnership with The Wildlife Trust for Manchester, Lancashire, and North Merseyside, and GMCA.
GMEF is all about bringing together communities and funding bodies keen to channel their resources into addressing environmental problems.
Featured Image – GMCA
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Six teenage boys arrested following stabbing of 13-year-old in Rochdale town centre
Emily Sergeant
Six teenage boys have been arrested following the stabbing of a 13-year-old in Rochdale town centre over the weekend.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) explained that officers were called out to reports of a ‘serious assault’ near the Riverside Shopping Centre in central Rochdale on Saturday (29 August), and when they arrived on the scene, they found that a 13-year-old boy had been stabbed.
The young boy currently remains in hospital receiving treatment, while a police investigation into the incident is open and ongoing.
Two teenage boys were first arrested on suspicion of assault and possession of a bladed article on the same day the incident occurred (29 August), but have since been released on bail.
Officers then made four further arrests yesterday (31 August), again all teenage boys who were arrested on suspicion of assault and possession of a bladed article, with enquires ongoing.
A Section 60 and 60AA ‘stop and search’ authority was introduced in Rochdale town centre following the recent incidents in area and following reports of youths carrying weapons in the locality, and this has now been extended to 3pm today (Tuesday 1 September).
“This was a serious and sustained attack that could have had far more tragic consequences,” explained Detective Superintendent, Richard Hunt .”Our team of experienced detectives is working around the clock to understand exactly what happened, identify all those involved, and secure the strongest possible evidence.
“We will relentlessly pursue every lead available to us and will leave no stone unturned in bringing all those responsible before the courts.
“Community safety remains our absolute priority, and we are committed to ensuring those who seek to bring violence onto our streets are held fully accountable for their actions.”
Can you help? Anyone who witnessed the incident, was in the town centre at the time, or has any mobile phone, CCTV, or dashcam footage, is urged to come forward and speak to police on 101, quoting log 2750 of 29/08/2026, or using the LiveChat function on the GMP website.
Alternatively, you can contact Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.
Featured Image – GMP
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High School Musical at Lowry, Salford – a night spent reliving our childhood | Review
Amy Williams
What a night spent reliving our childhood.
Now, I don’t want to exaggerate or seem biased, considering this is one of my favourite film trilogies of all time, but this could be the best stage show I’ve seen in a long while.
We all know how High School Musical goes, right? Set at East High, we follow Troy and Gabriella (the star basketball player, and the geeky new girl) who meet over New Year, and then become ‘star-crossed lovers’ when back at school as they’re part of two different ‘cliques’.
The duo mess with the ‘Status Quo’ when they audition for the school musical. But will they stick to what they know? Or become stars of the stage? I’m sure you know the ending.
High School Musical is currently on stage at Lowry, Salford / Credit: Matt Crockett (Supplied)
From the costumes and the characters, to the memorable songs (there’s actually 52 songs in this production, including a mega mix at the end), they’ve kept right to the script of the films – and that’s exactly what we wanted to see.
Of course, the biggest throwback of them all is Kaycee Stroh – who originally featured as Martha Cox in the film trilogy – taking the role as Ms Darbus, and she was just as incredible as we expected her to be. And to see her do the iconic dance in the finale was unbelievable, 13-year-old Amy was screaming.
Also featuring Jason Donovan as Coach Bolton, Tobias Turley as Troy, Leonor Correia as Gabriella, Caitlin Tipping Sharpay, and Luke Bayer as Ryan, it was a proper impressive cast all round.
It’s a night to properly relive your mid-00s childhood / Credit: Matt Crockett (Supplied)
There was crowd interaction right from the off, as they taught the crowd a cheerleading routine to be included later in the show, plus for the finale, they had the lyrics on the big screen too so everyone could sing-along.
If we could go and see this show every single night, we would – it is absolutely brilliant.
Emily Sergeant -
10th October 2024 
