A popular park in Salford that’s home to its very-own ‘Secret Garden’ is to get long-awaited £680,000 transformation.
Salford City Council has confirmed that Islington Park is soon to be upgraded to provide “a green oasis for nearby residents”, as well as make walking and cycling through it easier, and to join it to the Greater Manchester ‘Bee Network’ – which will be the largest network of off-road walking and cycling routes in the UK when it’s complete.
Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) has awarded Salford City Council a total of £683,249 in funding for the improvements to the city centre public greenspace.
Improvements to the park are aiming to make it “an even more pleasant place to relax”.
“The paths, cycle routes and lighting through the park will be upgraded along with the lawn and an area for pop up events or a café will be added,” explained Councillor Mike McCusker – Lead Member for Planning and Sustainable Development at Salford City Council.
ADVERTISEMENT
“More seating will be added, new trees planted to soak up rainfall, more plants including seasonal wildflowers, which will benefit wildlife and landscaping will make it an even more pleasant place to relax”.
“We’re adding cycle parking which includes Salford’s first stands for cargo bikes,” he continued.
ADVERTISEMENT
“We have an e-cargo bike library at Manchester Bikes in nearby Chapel Street to help more businesses try a green alternative to deliveries.”
As anyone who has ever been to Islington Park will know well, the park houses a mosaic that was designed by local school children all the way back in 1992 to commemorate Frances Hodgson Burnett – the author of the classic children’s novel, The Secret Garden.
Frances lived nearby as a child before emigrating to America, and published the book in 1911, drawing on her memories of England.
ADVERTISEMENT
Salford City Council has been awarded a total of £683,249 in funding for the improvements / Credit: David Dixon (via Geograph)
“Unfortunately, after 30 years of weathering, damage and many, many repairs the mosaic has reached the end of its life but we will preserve parts of it in feature walls, so it lives on for future generations,” Councillor McCusker added.
“We will also work with local children to create new mosaic designs which will be printed on aluminium.”
The works to improve Islington Park are to begin at the end of this moth, and Salford City Council says that, while all nearby footpaths will remain open, the park itself will be closed the period of restoration.
All improvement works are expected to finish in September 2022.
Man jailed after violent machete attack in Bolton left victim ‘seriously injured’
Emily Sergeant
A man has been jailed after carrying out a ‘violent’ machete attack in Bolton that left another man seriously injured.
Dale Dean appeared at Manchester Crown Court on last Friday (20 February 2026) after pleading guilty to causing grievous bodily harm with intent, possession of a bladed article, and affray, and was subsequently sentenced to six years behind bars.
The 27-year-old from Manchester was found to be carrying a machete ‘without lawful reason’.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) explained that, back on Saturday 5 April 2025, it received reports of a man holding a machete in a shop on Kentmere Road, in the Breightmet area of Bolton, and when officers attended the scene at around 7:50pm, they were told Dean was seen attacking another man in front of staff and members of the public.
The machete was used to attack the victim in the shop, who suffered several serious injuries – including to his head and shoulder.
Dean also caused ‘extensive damage’ to the shop and fled the scene.
In the aftermath of the attack, the victim was said to have struggled ‘to walk out on the street’ and had difficulty sleeping due to the pain and location of his injuries, but he has since recovered well from the attack overall.
On top of the six years in prison, the court imposed an additional 20‑month extended licence period upon Dean’s release due to the seriousness of the offence and the danger he poses to the public.
“This was a shocking and violent incident that left the victim with serious injuries and caused fear within the community,” commented Detective Constable Jordan Brown, of Bolton’s Criminal Investigation Department, following the sentencing at the end of last week.
“Dean’s actions were deliberate, dangerous, and showed a blatant disregard for the safety of others.
“[He] used or threatened unlawful violence, causing significant fear to those nearby, and was found to be carrying a machete without lawful reason.
“We welcome today’s sentence, which reflects the gravity of the offences. Our officers will continue to take decisive action against those who carry weapons and commit violent offences on our streets.”
Featured Image – GMP
News
Passengers thanked for their ‘patience’ as Manchester Piccadilly reopens after £7.9m upgrade
Emily Sergeant
Manchester Piccadilly has now officially reopened after a nine-day closure.
In case you hadn’t heard, Manchester Piccadilly train station closed on Saturday 14 February while a ‘once-in-a-generation upgrade’ was carried out – with very few train services running in or out of the station in the process, and as you’d expect, widespread disruption caused for those travelling around the region.
But thankfully now, after many journeys were impacted for those travelling to and from major destinations like Manchester Airport, and on the West Coast Mainline, the station is now back up and running.
The public are being thanked for their ‘patience’ while the the journey-improving work was carried out this past week.
Network Rail invested £7.9m into the major upgrade, with the main points of action being to improve tracks, points, and signalling systems on the southern approach to Manchester Piccadilly station.
🎥VIDEO UPDATE🛤️
👷🏼♂️Teams are carrying out final inspections after a 9-day closure for £7.9m track upgrades at Piccadilly 🔧
🏗️Trains will run from 5am tomorrow🚆
‼️Follow up work is needed on Sun 1 and Sun 22 March – please check @nationalrailenq🙏
Teams worked to replace 11 sets of points, renew timber sleepers with modern, concrete equivalents, and also bring lineside equipment ‘bang up to date’ across six lines to improve future journeys for passengers and freight.
Investment in this apparent ‘critical stretch’ of track had been long awaited, as any issues with the ageing infrastructure could’ve disrupted all trains running in and out of Manchester.
The closure also resulted in what was said to be one of the largest rail replacement bus operations the city has seen in recent memory, with a total of 8,922 services running over the course of the nine days to keep passengers on the move.
Manchester Piccadilly has now reopened to the public after its £7.9m upgrade / Credit: Network Rail
“We would like to say a big thank you to passengers for their patience while this once-in-a-generation upgrade has taken place over the last nine days,” commented Brian Paynter, who is the Capital Delivery track director at Network Rail.
“Manchester Piccadilly is one of the country’s busiest stations and it’s a key hub for people travelling to the North West.
“Upgrading the track over six lines in what’s known as the Piccadilly corridor will make journeys more reliable and the points and signalling systems less prone to faults – meaning fewer delays for passengers. It’s all part of our long-term commitment to invest millions of pounds to make the North West’s railway fit for the future.”
Unfortunately thought, the disruption doesn’t quite end there, as this coming Sunday 1 March, and then again on Sunday 22 March, routine follow-up work will take place to secure the new railway foundation stone through a process called tamping.
This will impact trains until passed midday, with passengers advised to check online ahead of time if planning travel on those dates.
Emily Sergeant -
19th May 2022 
