News

Stockport has been named Greater Manchester’s ‘Town of Culture’ for 2023

It's third place in the region to claim the coveted crown.

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 24th May 2023

Stockport has officially been crowned Greater Manchester Town of Culture for 2023.

It’s no secret now that in recent years, Stockport has been celebrated as an emerging hub of culture and creative activity in Greater Manchester, with the area producing some big-name stars in the arts, entertainment, and sporting spheres, as well as seeing significant new residential and commercial developments popping up, a food, drink, hospitality, and nightlife scene that continues to prove popular, and even being named as one of the best areas to invest in 2022.

But now, the town has got itself a fancy title to prove it – and along with that, a £50,000 grant to support arts and creativity in the wider borough.

Up against several other Greater Manchester areas all vying for the crown, Stockport’s bid was centred around the ‘One Stockport’ vision, which Stockport Council says sets out to support the local economy, connect communities, and promote health and wellbeing.

According to the Council, ‘One Stockport’ will be underpinned by four elements that “celebrate arts and creativity in the broadest sense”, as well as the town’s diverse cultural heritage.

These elements are Stockport Makes, Stockport Moves, Stockport Sounds, and Stockport Tastes.

Stockport has been named Greater Manchester’s ‘Town of Culture’ for 2023 / Credit: Stockport Market | Stockport Foodie Friday

Stockport’s year as Town of Culture also coincides with a number of major public redevelopments and investment in the town.

These include the Town Centre West regeneration, the refurbishment of the legendary Hat Works museum, “cutting-edge” digital arts opportunities to be opened up through the £2.6m Stockport Creative Campus Cultural Fund, and the development of the £14m Future High Street Stockroom discovery centre.

The town’s new title was announced at a presentation yesterday attended by famous faces such as local indie band Blossoms, and Stockport County defender Macauley Southam-Hales, as well as Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham, Stockport Council Leader Cllr Mark Hunter, and representatives from across the town’s cultural scene.

It’s third town in the region to claim the coveted crown / Credit: Stockport Council

“It’s a real pleasure to be able to announce Stockport as our third ever Town of Culture for 2023,” Andy Burnham said at the presentation yesterday.

“The town put forward a strong case for the accolade, backed up by some really exciting plans for events and activities that celebrate Stockport’s identity, its history, but also shine a spotlight on everything that’s happening right now.”

Stockport follows in the footsteps of Stalybridge, which held the title in 2022.

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Bury was announced as Greater Manchester’s inaugural Town of Culture for 2020, and held onto it into 2021 after the pandemic put a number of events and activities on hold.

Featured Image – Stockport Foodie Friday (via Facebook)

News

Manchester Youth Zone reopens following impressive £1.6m transformation

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

Manchester Youth Zone has officially relaunched following a significant £1.6 million investment and months of transformation.

Designed hand-in-hand with the young people of Harpurhey, where the centre – which is proudly a member of the OnSide Youth Zones – is based, the revitalised space represents a bold new chapter for Manchester Youth Zone (MYZ) and the new state-of-the-art facilites offer an exciting range of opportunities and experiences for young people to enjoy.

MYZ is open all year round to provide a ‘safe space’ for young people across North Manchester aged eight to 19, or up to 25 with additional needs.

Football, basketball, podcasting, music, cooking, boxing, dance, and dedicated wellbeing spaces are just some of the activities on offer for young people now that the refurbishment is complete.

The refurbishment is a major milestone for MYZ and its renewed mission to help young people discover their ‘purpose, passion, and pathway’ in life.

Manchester Youth Zone has reopened following an impressive £1.6m transformation / Credit: Supplied

This means that the newly-refurbished centre also offers space and facilities for meaningful support – with one-to-one navigators and youth workers working closely with the children and families to help ‘break down barriers’ and ‘unlock potential’.

MYZ is one of 140 youth centres in England to benefit from a Youth Investment Fund grant, announced by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

The Youth Investment Fund was granted to MYZ as part of the Government’s National Youth Guarantee to ‘transform and level up’ opportunities for young people in England.

“We’re delighted to unveil our newly transformed Manchester Youth Zone,” commented Heather Etheridge, who CEO of Manchester Youth Zone.

“It’s a significant milestone for MYZ and we’re extremely proud of the new space and what it has to offer the young people of Harpurhey.

“From its state-of-the-art facilities to dedicated wellbeing spaces we are a shining example of how investment, vision, and youth-led design can create lasting impact, and how truly transformational spaces can change lives.

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“We can’t wait to see it develop as a thriving hub of activity, creativity, and opportunity,  for young people and the wider community.”

Featured Image – Supplied

News

Relaunch date revealed for majorly revamped Altrincham Leisure Centre

Danny Jones Danny Jones Move Altrincham Leisure Centre reopening date confirmed

The opening date for the relaunch of Altrincham Leisure Centre, which recently underwent a serious revamp, has officially been announced.

Yes, Alty Leisure Centre – or rather, ‘move Altrincham’, as it will be known moving forward – is finally set to reopen in full following a significant rebrand and redevelopment.

Works on the local Trafford leisure centre and community hub actually first began way back in January 2023, but now, over two and a half years on from its closure for refurbishment, it’s just weeks away from being reopened to the public.

Now officially relaunching on 26 August, move Altrincham comes three years on from the opening of a fellow fitness facility in the borough, with move Urmston debuting in 2022.

Much like how the pandemic delayed the unveiling of their counterparts, it’s taken quite a while to complete the Altrincham Leisure Centre (ATC) overhaul.

The Urmston venue saw over £7 million pumped into resurrecting the old 1980s building back but in the case of ATC, more than £20m has been invested into this latest project overall.

Featuring a new, bigger and better fitness suite, state-of-the-art swimming pools, ‘The Cove Spa’ post-workout recovery and wellness assessment room; a brand-new purpose-built gymnastics hub, an expanded sports hall, as well as lots more, the place is set to be virtually unrecognisable.

As well as a rejigged changing room set-up, catering to men, women, groups and crucially inclusive, there’ll also be an enticing new cafe, featuring a resident in-house bakery from native artisans, MOST.

They really have put everything you could hope for into this major regeneration.

Local authorities have already dubbed this move Altrincham the “most sustainable sports facility” in the region, ahead of its opening later this month.

Sure to be a busy Alty outlet, Trafford Council has also confirmed that the building will use huge air source heat pumps and solar panels, saving upwards of 400 tonnes of carbon per year, with the remaining electricity imported off the grid pulled from a 100% green, renewable supply.

“More than 8,000 tonnes of carbon will be saved over the lifecycle of the pumps and panels, addressing the Council’s priority of addressing the climate crisis and becoming Carbon Neutral by 2038″, they go on to add.

Fixtures like this have been funded with support from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) and the UK government’s Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme, with over £2m of funding secured to bring the scheme to life.

Even the ‘purer’ pools will cost less money and water to run, not to mention the bonus of safe storage for bikes, nearby travel links to the Bee Network and EV charging points in the car park.

A long time coming.
Credit: move Altrincham

Speaking on the impending opening date, Cllr Aidan Williams – Trafford Council’s Executive Member for Climate Change – beckoned the reborn leisure centre as a shining example of the borough’s commitment to crucial environmental change.

“move Altrincham is a great example of how we’re setting new standards in Trafford that will help the Council achieve its zero carbon goals and send a powerful message to our communities that we treat climate change seriously and are working hard to create a greener, cleaner future,” says Williams.

Once again, the new and improved Alty Leisure Centre opens its doors on Tuesday, 26 August, and we can’t wait to see what the neighbours make of it.

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Featured Images — move Altrincham (via Facebook/Press Shots)

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