Residents living in the central Ancoats area have spoken out to shed light on the ongoing acts of antisocial behaviour that they believe is ruining their neighbourhood.
Some homeowners have said that continuous loud music being played, littering and street drinking has taken over the area’s popular Cutting Room Square and it is turning one the most desirable neighbourhoods in Manchester into “the new Piccadilly Gardens”.
Antisocial behaviour in the area is reported to have significantly risen during the past few months of lockdown amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
One resident – who spoke to the Manchester Evening News but did not wish to be named – claims that groups of people from outside the area have taken advantage of the open outdoor spaces to get drunk and play loud music all hours of the day.
These claims come after images and videos surfaced on social media following May Bank Holiday weekend, which showed dozens of people congregating in Cutting Room Square – sparking concerns after there appeared to be a visible lack of social distancing – and leaving hundreds of items of litter behind them.
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Spent the day despairing of the reprobates gathering in Cutting Room Square, Ancoats all day today. 36K deaths, 261K infections, but infinitely more selfish people that live only for themselves. Only silver lining was the community + NAM restaurant coming together to clean it up. pic.twitter.com/x8UpDZyHZj
— MaximilianCarstensen (@_MaxInAMillion_) May 25, 2020
The resident said: “This year I have seen a lot of changes with the way lockdown has affected the type of people coming into Ancoats and being disrespectful. I think it started when lockdown began to ease and people could go outside, probably around late May. We noticed a lot more people being in Cutting Room Square that were perhaps not from round here.”
“It’s the drinking, noise and behaviour to people walking through the square that’s the worst,”
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“These people are still coming to the square but may not be buying from businesses who own the square, and are instead bringing their own drinks.
“People have been urinating in doorways and stairways and openly do drugs.
“I understand that I live in the city centre and it’s going to be noisy, but these people are coming in groups of more than six – which is not allowed. They are drinking and then deciding who should drive the car which is dangerous for everyone in the area not just them.”
The resident also said that his friends and neighbours have been verbally abused, and that some have received homophobic abuse, which is behaviour he has “not really seen round here before”.
He said that the behaviour has made him consider moving from the area and he is worried his flat could lose value.
The resident continued: “I work from home and even during the day there are groups of people out there drinking Budweiser at 11am in the morning. It could definitely become the new Piccadilly Gardens and it’s a shame for everyone who lives here, but particularly the businesses.”
“It’s quite scary at times – on a weekend we have gone outside the square for food and drinks because we didn’t want to be involved in that,”
“It has made me consider moving from Ancoats and that has never crossed my mind before.”
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FOR INFORMATION- There is currently a section 35 dispersal order in place in Cutting Room square, Ancoats. Police will actively be inforcing this order if members of the public are engaging in antisocial behaviour in the square. Many thanks
— GMP – Newton Heath (@GMPNewtonHeath) June 13, 2020
Manchester City Council say they are aware of reports of antisocial behaviour in the area, and are working with Greater Manchester Police to tackle the issue.
Councillor Nigel Murphy – Deputy Leader of Manchester City Council – said: “We are aware of reports of antisocial and criminal activity in the Cutting Room Square area and are working in partnership with Greater Manchester Police to tackle this unacceptable behaviour.
“We’re committed to ensuring that residents can enjoy using the square without being subjected to verbal abuse and antisocial street drinking. The council has a dedicated team working with partners and residents to investigate and take appropriate action. We would welcome any new information that would help us to identify the individuals responsible – for example, descriptions, vehicle details and registration plates.”
Residents are urged to report incidents of antisocial behaviour, via www.manchester.gov.uk, or to contact the Police if any criminal activity is witnessed.
News
Huge bakery chain Gail’s confirms move to Prestwich – but spells village’s name wrong in signs
Daisy Jackson
After months of swirling rumours, bakery group Gail’s has finally confirmed it’s moving to Prestwich – but locals have spotted a glaring error at the first hurdle.
The popular artisan bakery will be moving onto Bury New Road, right in the heart of the suburb and directly opposite the new Rudy’s pizzeria.
Prestwich locals have been hearing whispers of a Gail’s arriving for a few months, and finally the London-founded cafe has stuck up signs to confirm it’s on the way.
But the sign contains one crucial mistake – it’s spelled Prestwich wrong.
The red window displays now read ‘Hello Preswich. We’ll be baking here soon’.
One local messaged Gail’s to point out the error and to say it’s ‘not a great first impression for the locals…’.
Gail’s has since confirmed it’s in the process of fixing the signs.
The arrival of both Gail’s and Rudy’s has already caused a stir in Prestwich, which has always been fiercely independent and has only a handful of chains within it (Greggs and Costa are perched by the tram stop).
In fact, one local business-owner shared a moving statement about his concerns for the future of local businesses just a few weeks ago.
Gail’s has confirmed it’s opening a bakery in Prestwich. Credit: The Manc Group
First formed in the early 1990s as a wholesale-only operation, Gail’s opened its first cafe on Hampstead High Street in 2005.
Today the brand has more than 100 sites spread across London, Oxford, Brighton and further afield, and is known more as a customer-facing cafe and bakery.
It’s famed for its freshly-baked loaves, cinnamon buns, ham and cheese croissants and coffees, and is likely to go down a storm in Prestwich.
But the signs have been causing a bit of a stir in the wrong way this weekend – in a local Facebook group, one person commented: “Not locals who own it then.”
Another described it as an ‘epic fail’.
And one person said: “Oh the DRAMA of it all.”
Someone else joked: “I cannot wait for Gais to come to Preswich.”
Met Office issues snow warnings for large parts of northern England from this evening
Emily Sergeant
Greater Manchester could be waking up to a winter wonderland as weather warnings for snow and ice have been issued across northern England.
Expected to arrive anywhere from 6pm this evening (18 November) and last until around 10am tomorrow morning (19 November), the Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning for snow and ice for large parts of northern England – indicating that “snow may bring disruption to a central swathe of the UK during Monday night and Tuesday morning”.
Weather forecasters say that although most snow is likely to accumulate on higher ground, with five-10 cm on ground over 200 metres, and possibly 15-20 cm over 300 metres, there is a chance that snow may settle at lower levels “within the warning area”.
The Met Office also said that this possible five-10 cm at lower levels is likely to be “more disruptive”, particularly if travelling and if the snow coincides with rush hour, but the likelihood for that is still “uncertain” at this stage.
Greater Manchester could see snow from this evening as the Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning / Credit: Geograph | Pexels
As the rain, sleet, and snow begin to clear on tomorrow morning, ice may form on surfaces that are untreated.
“We have issued yellow warnings for snow and ice as cold weather moves in from the north,” explained Andy Page, who is a Chief Meteorologist at the Met Office.
“This brings snow showers and some ice to parts of Scotland on Sunday night, and then the potential for a spell of snow to lead to disruption to some transport routes across a central swathe of the UK on Tuesday morning.”
⚠️ Yellow weather warning UPDATED ⚠️
Snow & ice across southern parts of Scotland, northern England, the Midlands and north Wales
In addition to the severe weather warnings, a Cold Health Alert has also been issued by the UKHSA, and it covers the north of England and the Midlands right through until Thursday.
The Manc -
7th September 2020 
