When you think of new build homes, a lot of us might immediately picture a plain, square, neat little house, with magnolia walls, beige carpet and a completely unremarkable patch of grass out the back.
Despite these preconceptions, hordes of Mancs are heading out of the city centre in order to put down roots somewhere where you have your own front door, flights of stairs, and no scary rent increases looming overhead.
For those of us who want all the perks of a new build, but don’t want to compromise on style and character, there’s a new development in town that is bucking the trend.
Northstone’s Silkash neighbourhood has created 150 genuinely beautiful homes, full of design-led details like huge windows, natural textures in walls and floors, and landscaped gardens.
This new generation of new builds is situated in Westhoughton in Bolton, surrounded by green space but with super-easy transport links back into the city centre for those still clinging on to the hustle and bustle of Manchester.
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Inside Northstone’s new build Silkash homes in Westhoughton, Greater Manchester. Credit: The Manc Group
Northstone has designed the neighbourhood to suit style-conscious home-owners, whether it’s your first step on to the property ladder or you’re just to get some extra space for your family.
Each home comes with high ceilings to complement those massive windows, and buyers can take advantage of the flexible spaces inside. They promise it’s the ‘antithesis of the pokey new build’.
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For anyone worrying about the cost of living too (which is, well, all of us), the houses are some of the most energy-efficient on the market, packed with technology that will help households to reduce their energy usage.
The Silkash neighbourhood was built with community in mind – these are the sort of streets with trees, and wide spaces where kids can play out and neighbours can gather for street parties.
Anita Jolley, sales director at Northstone, said: “Most people come with a pre-loaded opinion about new build homes – some good, a lot bad.
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“Time and again we smash those preconceptions as soon as people step through the door. Whether the wide tree-lined streets when people arrive, or the high ceilings, big windows and flexible layout of the homes, it’s a form of suburban living for those that really appreciate good design.
Inside Northstone’s new build Silkash homes in Westhoughton, Greater Manchester. Credit: The Manc Group
“Quite often, people really want their own front door and outdoor space, but they’re reluctant to leave their city centre apartment as they don’t want to compromise style.
“Northstone homes are fantastic for first time buyers and families who want more space and design-led living spaces at locations with excellent transport links.
“A big motivator for buyers is also the energy crisis and the effect on bills. Every inch of our homes has been designed with this in mind, meaning they’re some of the most energy efficient currently on the market in Greater Manchester.”
There are a range of house types available in Northstone’s Silkash neighbourhood, from two-bedroom to four-bedroom homes.
Huge line-up revealed for Leeds International Festival of Ideas
Sophie Smith
The 2023 line-up for Leeds International Festival of Ideas has been released, and it’s all taking place in a brand new venue.
The huge event will bring together some of the most thought-provoking speakers of our time and is well worth the trip across to our neighbouring city.
Taking over the Leeds Playhouse will be a diverse programme and educational discussions, The Hoot reports.
Giving a glimpse of what we’re in store for this year, LIFI has announced the first of its highly-anticipated speakers.
Best-selling author and mental health campaigner Ruby Wax will be bringing her unique brand of humour to the festival as she takes the audience on her journey to address the importance of mental wellness.
Ruby Wax is “thrilled to be a part of the line-up”. / Image: Supplied
The author, performer and activist is excited about joining the festival: “Leeds International Festival of ideas 2023 looks really exciting and I’m thrilled to be part of the line-up this year. I can’t wait to visit Leeds again and take audiences on my journey to mindfulness.”
Steven Bartlett, perhaps most notably known as the podcaster Diary of a CEO, co-Founder of Social Chain, and also as an investor on Dragon’s Den, amongst other business endeavours, will be taking to the stag to share an insight into ‘how he spots the next big thing’.
Steven Bartlett will be telling Leeds how he ‘spots the next big thing’. / Image: Supplied
Bringing an insight into representation and inclusivity in the media, reality TV star and LGBTQ+ activist Bimini, will also be a key speaker at the International Festival of Ideas.
And this is just the beginning.
The four day festival promises to host a programme of panels and keynotes which focus on topics such as grief, political systems, womxn’s health inequalities and self-sufficiency, among others from Wednesday 27 September – Saturday 30 September 2023.
Bimini is bringing a wealth of knowledge to LIFI23. / Image: Supplied
And what better venue than the Leeds Playhouse?
The award-winning cultural hub was recently recognised at the UK Theatre Awards as the Most Welcoming Theatre in 2022. With a mission to seek out the best companies and artists to create inspirational theatre in the heart of Yorkshire, Leeds Internationals Festival of Ideas, will be joining the long list of exciting productions, festivals and events that Leeds Playhouse have hosted over the past 50 years.
Martin Dickson, Leeds International Festival of Ideas has commented: “We are thrilled with the programme we are bringing to the city for LIFI23, built on the outstanding success of last year, we think it is our strongest speaker line-up yet.
“We’re also hugely excited to be presenting the festival at the incredible Leeds Playhouse, on of the most famous theatre venue in the city, a privilege and an honour.
“LIFI23 will once again address some of the most important social issues affecting us all, taking them on over 4 inspirational days across 11 events and shining an outspoken light on Leeds, projecting the city once again as a bold, innovative thought-leading city.”
The full lineups and tickets will be available from Tuesday 4 April but in the meantime those wanting to grab tickets are encouraged to visit the Leeds International Festival of Ideas website to sign up for announcements and ticket updates.
Fitness influencers with combined 1.4 MILLION followers band together for empowering event at Hero Training Clubs
Daisy Jackson
Some of the biggest names in fitness came together for an inspiring International Women’s Day event at Hero Training Clubs in Manchester this month.
Lucy Davis, a former GB swimmer and fitness influencer with a massive 587k followers on Instagram alone, hosted the event at the boutique gym in the city centre.
The Someday is Today event featured fitness classes, panel talks, networking and food and drink, all geared towards celebrating and empowering strong women.
Lucy brought together women from across the fitness industry to showcase that women can build strong bodies without ever feeling intimidated in the gym.
Speakers at the panel talks included TikTok fitness sensation Natalee B Fitness (whose videos show why no one should feel self-conscious in the gym), Gymshark athlete and Shreddy trainer Oyinda Okunowo, and nutritionist Dr Emilia Thompson.
They were also joined by Farah Fonseca, who’s been named England’s Strongest Woman three times, best-selling food author Lucy Lord, and disabled bodybuilder Taylor Crisp.
Then those who attended took part in two of Hero’s industry-leading fitness classes, either spin and conditioning, or boxing and yoga, taught by some of Manchester’s best female instructors, encouraging people to step out of their comfort zone.
Goody bags stuffed with items from Gymshark and Myprotein were handed out at the end of the day, with Myprotein also handing out snacks and protein to fuel the day.
A spokesperson for Hero said: “We are so proud to have hosted such an empowering event for Women run by an amazing athlete herself – Lucy Davis.
“We are looking forward to hosting more events like this in the future as it shows exactly what our gym is about working on yourself but in a positive and motivating community.”
Daisy Jackson -
30th January 2023 
