Loud bangs and screams were heard
20:50, 27 Sep 2025Updated 21:02, 27 Sep 2025
A boarded up window at the house
Neighbours have descibed how a ‘petrified’ mum and son watched on in horror as a car went up in flames and ‘exploded’ on their driveway.
The family home on Cleggswood Avenue in Littleborough, Rochdale, was the subject of a ‘terrifying and deliberate’ arson attack in the early hours of Saturday, September 6.
Locals have described a car pulling up on the street shortly before a car, said to be a Range Rover, on the driveway of the house was set alight.
Loud bangs and screams were heard, at around 1:15am, as a mum and her son, said to be around nine years-old, fled the property and ‘huge’ flames engulfed the vehicle, before spreading to the front of the house.
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Emergency services taped off the residential street, a short distance from the picturesque Hollingworth Lake, as the fire crews tackled the blaze, which has caused visible damage to the front of the property.
The downstairs front window remains boarded up whilst panes of glass in the upstairs front windows can be seen to have smashed.
A smashed window at the property
A 42-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of stalking and conspiracy to commit arson. He has been bailed pending further enquiries. Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said today their investigation is continuing and appealed for information from the public.
One neighbour told the Manchester Evening News that she was alerted by the car’s alarm going off.
“It stopped, then it went off again” she said. “Then I heard the girl and her son screaming at the bottom of my drive. She was really hysterical.
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“I went out and by then the car was well alight. It didn’t half go up. The little boy was terrified. The room at the front of the house is his.
“There were about three fire engines here, police, all sorts. I’ve tried to put it into perspective and think ‘how often do things like this happen?'” she added.
Another neighbour said: “It was the car alarm that woke me up. I looked out thinking it was mine. It went off and I was about to go back to bed when it started again. I looked again and just thought ‘what the hell?’ I could see the flames and they were absolutely huge.
Flames engulfed the vehicle and spread to the front of the house(Image: MEN MEDIA)
“It went up really quick. The fire was raging. My first concern was ‘is anyone in the house?’
“I ran and got my slippers on, went out, and she must have got out as she was stood there with her young boy and two dogs. She was hysterical. The little boy was so upset.
“I took him and the dogs to my house. He was petrified, bless him. He was saying ‘I don’t want to go back there.’ It broke my heart.
“Next minute all the police and fire brigade turned up. I couldn’t believe it. Especially when I saw the state of it the next day. I was gobsmacked. This was a nice area you just wouldn’t expect it.
“It appears it’s an isolated thing. I just feel so sorry for the little lad.”
Rob Cunningham, 66, said: “At that point I didn’t hear anything. But my neighbour phoned me and asked ‘are you coming out?’ I said ‘pardon?’ When I came out it was all taped off with fire engines and police here.
“It was almost out by then. It was a smouldering wreck. It was gone. Next door weren’t in so they had to break in and make sure it hadn’t spread into there.
“I checked my camera and I could see a car come down and turn around and come back. Some people in the car get out. A few seconds later the Range Rover on the drive burst into flames.
A picture of the car police would like to identify(Image: MEN MEDIA)
“I was really shocked. It could have been a lot worse. She was lucky. She must have heard the noise and got out.”
Another neighbour said the car had ‘exploded’ and there were ‘big bangs’ as it went up in flames. “II just feel so sorry for the child” she said. “That is going to mark them for life. It’s just such a dreadful thing to happen.”
In a statement issued earlier today, GMP said that despite no one being physically hurt, the family had suffered ‘unimaginable’ trauma and had been left ‘shaken and deeply affected.’
Detective Constable Mel Jeffery. from GMP’s Rochdale division, said: “This was a terrifying and deliberate attack that could have ended in tragedy. A mother and her young child were asleep in their home when their car was set alight on the driveway, just outside the front door.
“The flames quickly spread to the front of the house, and it was only thanks to the car’s alarm that they were able to escape safely with their pets.
“The trauma they’ve experienced is unimaginable. They are safe, but shaken and deeply affected by what happened.
“We believe this was a targeted incident, and while there is no wider threat to the public, we are determined to find those responsible.
“I’m urging anyone who lives or works in the area to check their CCTV, doorbell footage, or dashcam recordings from around the time of the incident on 6 September. Even the smallest detail could be the missing piece we need.
“If you saw or heard anything unusual, or if you have any information at all—please come forward. Help us bring justice to this family and ensure those responsible are held accountable.”
The force issued an image of a vehicle they said would like to identify the the owner or occupants of as they ‘believe they could hold vital information in relation to this investigation.’ It is believed the vehicle could have travelled to Lancashire and West Yorkshire.
Anyone with information is asked to call GMP on 101, or using the Live Chat services on their website, quoting log number 205 of 06/09/25.
Alternatively, you can contact the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.