Plans for concreting Mottram axed – Mottram greenbelt and Hattersley playing field saved!  But planners want to know your views!
Manchester planners have now now scrapped their plans to build on Mottram's greenbelt and playing field.. But the planners want your thoughts on this. The plans are only proposals. They could change their mind! . So please respond to their current consultation. To help you, you can download  a draft response letter here.

But Godley Green is still in the Plans.

  See 10 reasons to object  here.

This is a massive area of greenbelt . Just look at the area outlined in red on above map—as big as all of Hattersley west of Stockport Rd! This huge site of 2,350 homes will generate tons more traffic. The majority of the householders there will be commuters, and if even just half of them come our way to the M67 motorway junction, this is likely to bring around 2500 extra vehicles. This will affect all of Longdendale— making the tailbacks worse down Mottram Moor, Ashworth Lane and the motorway. This extra traffic will mean yet more pollution for all of us. And more pollution means yet more asthma, heart disease + deaths.

The extra people coming from Godley Green could commute by train. But if even 10 % of them do so, this would still mean hundreds more passengers at Hattersley station. As it is, the trains are packed beyond capacity in the rush hours there, with no new carriages added. The transport infrastructure needs to be in place before any new building—otherwise it’s unlikely to happen.

So, please object to the Godley Green site.

Ways to respond

1. you can download  a draft response letter here. Drop if off to Nick and Sue Woods Ironmongers, Mottram, or contact us for other drop-off points.

Deadline for delivery of your draft response sheet to us: Tues March 12th 2019 9 PM.

2.  Online click here —   (https://www.gmconsult.org/communications-and-engagement-team/gmsf/consultation/)

3.  Email: planningandhousing@greatermanchester-ca.co.uk [+ your name, address and postcode, and state which sites you are referring to—these are named on the draft letter]

4. Post: [remember to include your name, address and postcode] [ditto—say which sites you’re referring to]

Planning Team Consultation, GMCA, Churchgate House, 56 Oxford Street, Manchester, M1 6EU

Closing date for submissions direct to planners: Monday March 18th, 2019

If you send them directly, please also email us to say you've done so, so we can log the feedback numbers, and represent the community voice to the Manchester “super-Council!”  

PLEASE ALSO SEND A SEPARATE OBJECTION FOR EACH OF YOU IF YOU ARE WRITING AS A COUPLE OR MULTIPLE MEMBERS OF A HOUSEHOLD, because in the last campaign they only counted households so the number of objections got under-reported.   Keep polite or they’ll bin it!

OTHER THINGS YOU CAN DO Join our email group— to get news updates. Contact us at office@longdendalecg.org.uk + Follow us on facebook.

You can download the entire GMSF revised document as a pdf here

 

Reversing Hyde Town Centre decline—how NOT to do it

NEW HATTERSLEY RETAIL PARK will suck  more life out of Hyde shops and add more traffic fumes, chaos and Concrete over Mottram

SOS – Save our Greenbelt video  –  to watch it click here

 

Car Boot Sale


 Our champions of the year are our social team, who have raised £103 for our much-needed funds at the car boot sale in Stockport. Well done to everyone who contributed items, and a special thanks to Kathryn and Shirley for manning the stall. Spot their lovely placard peeping out! They are getting everywhere!

The Hidden Agenda of the Government's Housing Plans

THIS GOVERNMENT PAPER TOOK OUR BREATH AWAY – BECAUSE OF ITS DEGREE OF HIDDEN AGENDA! It steers readers to promote a developers’ “Charter.” This will bring: more compulsory purchase powers, removal of the protection to green belt, and disposal of treasured community assets. It masquerades as valuing the community voice, but in reality it does the opposite. THE REAL MOTIVES ARE BETRAYED IN THE QUESTIONS THEY ASK.

Thanks to everyone who responded to the consultation to this White Paper!

To see our response click HERE.

Highlights of our response:

  • The consultation questions raise hardly any of the points of concern to communities that they acknowledge in the text.
  • The White Paper is designed to steer readers by virtue of the questions it asks. Indeed we feel that this White Paper has the appearance of a Developers’ “Charter.”
  • We make 12 recommendations for a more pro-active two-way, ongoing dialogue between the Dept of Communities and Local Government, and the communities they serve.

 

Rally in Albert Square

Well done, everyone who came to the rally! It was a great day out, and a fantastic inspiration to be with hundreds of folk from all over Manchester at the iconic Albert Square, standing where so many people have stood down through history for their various causes.
The event refuelled us with yet more feisty determination, to Say No to the Concreting of Mottram and Hattersley’s Playing Field; to stand with our fellow campaigners from Stalybridge and Godley Green; and to link up more with Greater Manchester Community Groups and beyond – to Expert Groups campaigning at National Government level.
Thanks too to everyone who has helped produce posters, distribute leaflets, website work and lots more, and to the Save Manchester Greenbelt Group for organising the event!

 

Rally

 

For more images view the gallery

Manchester Rally

Why was this rally on April fool’s Day? Because we recognize that Powerhouse money-grabbing, developer-led Council Plans DO NOT FOOL US!

Well done everyone who has objected to the GMSF

and to those who turned out to the protest march in gruelling weather conditions. Many of you walked the whole way to the far end of Gee Cross!

Save our green belt!

Here are Shirley and Katherine, from our core team.NO! to Concreting Motrram

– Handing the draft letter objections by hand to Manchester town hall.

Our Group’s corporate response to the Manchester planners was a massive 14 page document

which we submitted to them! In this, we gave 32 reasons for objecting to the GMSF plans for Mottram, and 10 reasons to reject the GMSF plan as a whole.

We also sent them photographs such as these, to help get our message across…….

No means no! like we said in previous consultations

For our story of the campaign and more images click here.

 

LCFlowersG and villagers adopt Mottram flower troughs

Thanks to our social team and residents on Stalybridge Road for adopting the flower troughs, which TMBC are no longer maintaining. The team have planted gorgeous flowers, which looked stunning through the summer to late autumn!

Kathryn, from our social team, writes:
A small group of volunteers wanted to brighten Mottram and raise community spirit. Our fund-raising Spring Afternoon Tea enabled us to raise £150 to benefit our area. In June we used some of this profit to supplement Tameside Council's District Assembly fund to purchase plants and for enhancing Stalybridge Road metal and wooden planters.
A group member's husband Allen, offered his expertise, time and labour to our small team, who weeded and planted the tubs.

Several residents, living close to these planters, agreed to support our efforts by tending and watering the plants regularly. This gave the village a warm glow over the summer months and well into autumn.

Thanks to our growing band of volunteers and all those supporting our successful community project.

Treasure HuntTreasure Hunt

Eight teams from a wide age range valiantly set off on the Longdendale Community Group's Mottram Treasure Hunt on Saturday, 12th September. As the teams braved persistent rain and teddy bears parachuting from the parish church tower they searched for the answers to the 50 clues dotted around the village. The teams were genuinely enjoying the event as they discovered hidden corners and historical or curious facts relating to this special village.

With 6 teams scoring highly and the top 2 teams gaining full marks, the winners were decided by the tie break question, 'In cm what is the height of the village Christmas tree?' And so it was that in a nail biting finale 'The Goomers' won by 2 cm. Many congratulations to them and well done to all who took part. As the sun finally broke through with late afternoon sunshine we retreated to the Mottram Cricket Club function room for a cricket tea and the prize giving ceremony. We would like to thank the cricket club for the use of their premises, our wonderful caterers who did a magnificent job and the people who had donated the prizes.
To see where we hunted for clues around Mottram, click here.

Magna CaterMagna Carta 800th

At our summer festival, lots of competition categories made for a really colourful and entertaining event, and lovely refreshments were provided. Many exhibits were so fantastic that they amazed the judges! Gold, silver and bronze medals were awarded for first, second and third places in art, needlecraft, models, history, poetry and baking.

The needlecraft exhibit by Rose
Woolley (shown here on far right) drew great admiration!

See picture gallery here
.
For more about the Magna Carta see here.

 

 

 

 

VILLAGE GREENS” CHARLESWORTH GREENGROCER SHORTLISTED FOR “BEST SMALL SHOPS” IN THE UK.Village Greens Grocer

There were hundreds of entries. The twenty shortlisted shop owners were invited to a reception at the House of Commons. Congratulations to Kim, Rod and their staff!

Kim (pictured on right) proprietor of Village Greens, with her Shop Award!

Comments from customers:

“Absolutely amazing shop. The presentation is beautiful, the food fresh, but best of all the staff are attentive and so helpful!”

“Where else would you get a warm cup of roasted butternet soup to sample whilst doing your shopping?”Customer at Village Greens Grocer

“Fantastic seasonal local produce.”

 

 

 

 

RESULTS OF OUR SURVEY

– MOTTRAM RESIDENTS AND HYDE SHOPKEEPERS’ RESPONSE TO NEW DISTRICT CENTRE PLANSHattersley Cominity Centre

A unanimous NO!

Our consultation was posted through letterboxes and distributed to local shops.

Of 300 responses, not one person wanted this development! Read more…

 

 Mottram by pass

The onward march of the developers looms over us more than ever.

It appears that this corridor from the proposed district centre site through to Roe Cross is an expansion of the Concreting of Mottram plan. The by-pass is linked with allowing industrial and big retail development, plus more housing, all along the Longdendale corridor

This will mean the loss of a lot of green space for a lot of people in Mottram and Hollingworth

Up-to-date plans for the Mottram by-pass do not appear to have been published, and are probably in preparation (if you find anything, let us know!). From what has been announced so far, the plans seem to roughly correspond to the old Mottram Spur (of the Longdendale by-pass) on its own. This can be seen on the LITS scheme (ie the Longdendale Integrated Transport Scheme ) map, shown in part below. The Spur is indicated with red arrows.

Mottram By pass