Resurfaced footage shows residents talking about the problems of the doomed estates in Ardwick and Hulme
The Coverdale Crescent estate, dubbed ‘Fort Ardwick’
They were supposed to be a solution to Manchester’s slum housing problem in the mid-to-late 20th century, but they ended up causing more problems than they solved.
In the late 1960s, Manchester council faced the challenge of rehoming thousands of tenants whose homes were marked for demolition.
With tenants reluctant to move into high-rise flats, the town hall came up with a plan to build modular concrete estates of six to 10 storeys, which could be quickly built on relatively small plots.
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In the 1970s, people turfed out of their communities of terraced streets began being rehomed in these brutalist south Manchester estates with their endless concrete landings.
Two of the most notorious of these estates were built in Ardwick and Hulme. Soon after construction, both were beset by problems stemming from poor planning and low-quality construction.
In Ardwick, the new estate on Coverdale Crescent was completed in 1972, providing 500 homes for displaced families. It was hailed as the future – but the dream quickly went sour.
Fort Ardwick. Ardwick, Manchester, 12th January 1971
Dubbed ‘Fort Ardwick’ because it looked like a concrete fortress, by the mid-1980s, it was clear it was riddled with structural faults. Water was leaking through the roofs, and the concrete was crumbling away.
In Hulme, the crescents were named after renowned Regency architects whose work the estate was said to be inspired by. The first tenants moved in shortly after its completion in 1971.
But, from the off, costs were cut and, within a couple of years, the estate was vermin-ridden, leaky and almost impossible to heat.
Manchester council, which at that point had a surplus of housing, began moving families out, leaving many empty flats.
By the mid to late ’80s, the authorities had virtually given up on the crumbling, desolate estates.
Recently, archive footage of life on the giant estates has resurfaced online.
Children running in the John Nash Crescent, Hulme, Manchester, 2nd May 1971
The BBC Archive footage from 1974 features several interviews with residents who discuss the problems they face living on the estates intended to solve the housing crisis.
After pointing out the problems with her home, one woman tells the interviewer, “It’s worse than the slums, I think.”
As part of Manchester Council’s vision to build ‘streets in the sky’ during the era, the estates’ elevated landings were intended to recreate the community feel of the old streets.
However, more often than not, they ended up being dangerous and noisy rat-runs.
One man wearing a chequered flat cap explains to the interviewer the design flaw that was the landing of the upper floor running over the top of his bedroom: “You can hear noises all the time… Every time somebody walks across it’s thump, thump, thump, in the middle of the night.”
There is also charming footage of elderly residents telling groups of young people playing football to “clear off” while one young person complains that the dedicated playing area they were promised was never built.
The top deck of Buckingham House, Coverdale Crescent, crashes to the ground as “Fort Ardwick” is demolished. May 1992
In 1991, the Government provided Manchester with a £30m pot of cash to revitalise its ailing housing stock, and it was decided that the failed estates were to be demolished.
Fort Ardwick was pulled down in 1992, while demolition work in Hulme began in 1993, and two years later, the Crescents were no more.