{"id":64303,"date":"2025-05-01T00:40:14","date_gmt":"2025-05-01T00:40:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/64303\/"},"modified":"2025-05-01T00:40:14","modified_gmt":"2025-05-01T00:40:14","slug":"six-blocks-of-flats-on-deprived-greater-manchester-estate-to-be-torn-down","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/64303\/","title":{"rendered":"Six blocks of flats on ‘deprived’ Greater Manchester estate to be torn down"},"content":{"rendered":"

The estate has been undergoing redevelopment for over a decade\"GreeneryGreenery in the Lower Falinge estate in Rochdale – which is earmarked for yet more demolition(Image: Jake Lindley \/ Manchester Evening News)<\/p>\n

Six apartment blocks in Rochdale will be demolished after sitting empty for years.<\/p>\n

Rochdale<\/a> Boroughwide Housing (RBH) wants to regenerate the Lower Falinge estate and has determined bulldozing the blocks is the only affordable option. Now plans for demolition of the Lower Falinge estate, named the most deprived area in England for the fifth successive year back in 2013, have been approved.<\/p>\n

The maisonette blocks destined for the wrecking ball include Ollerton, Newstead, Romsey, Quinton, Ullesthorpe, and Vaynor.<\/p>\n

The vacant blocks have slowly been emptied since 2017. But not all the 1970\u2019s style apartment blocks will be levelled as some still have residents living there.<\/p>\n

\"AndyAndy Roche, 50, fighting to save the Lower Falinge estate blocks(Image: Jake Lindley \/ Manchester Evening News)<\/p>\n

One example is the Zedburgh block, where Andy Roche and his partner are the only ones left. Andy has lived on the estate since 1988 and has no intention of going anywhere.<\/p>\n

His presence there is the only reason Zedburgh isn\u2019t among the six blocks set to be knocked down.<\/p>\n

In a previous interview with the Manchester Evening News, Andy said: “It\u2019s upsetting to see them empty, because I really like living here.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cWith the trees it\u2019s really nice in Spring. But the blocks have been boarded up now after the vandalism.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is no gang activity or violence here. I\u2019m not saying nothing ever happens, but it felt safe here – especially when it\u2019s full. For us these flats are ideal, because we have ground floor access and my partner has mobility issues. We like the layout of these.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re not against regeneration, per say, but it\u2019s about what their plan actually is and we just don\u2019t know.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s quiet now, but it did have a community that has all gone away now. We have been split as well, the new homes are between us and the other half of the estate – so they\u2019ve ripped us in half.\u201d<\/p>\n

Millions of pounds have already been invested into newer housing in the area, with new housing blocks already built in the estate – creating a strange mix of old and new housing. RBH says it intends to continue on that path of regeneration once the six blocks are gone.<\/p>\n

The site off Spotland Road would be left as vacant grassland until RBH makes a decision on the next stages of their redevelopment plans.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe Zedburgh block of flats on the Lower Falinge estate, Rochdale(Image: Jake Lindley \/ Manchester Evening News)<\/p>\n

In a letter sent to residents back in March, RBH said: \u201cWe aim to complete the demolition of the six empty blocks and the commercial buildings within the next 12 months and will be seeking planning permission in the coming weeks.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe plan to carry out preparation work soon, so you will see some increased activity around the blocks.<\/p>\n

“Once we have appointed a contractor, we will provide another update which will give you more specific timescales for this work.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter demolition, these sites will be temporarily grassed while we work with the community and our partners to consider the next projects in the regeneration.<\/p>\n

\"BoardedBoarded up flats on the Lower Falinge estate in Rochdale (Image: Jake Lindley \/ Manchester Evening News)<\/p>\n

“We have some more work to do before we can share the next stage, and we will make sure that we let you know as soon as we can about how you can get involved in the design of these projects.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe things you told us in December have been helpful, including your preference for more housing in the area, making Lower Falinge a safer place to live and more community projects.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe look forward to working with you in the coming years to design and deliver these projects.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The estate has been undergoing redevelopment for over a decadeGreenery in the Lower Falinge estate in Rochdale –…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":64304,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8813],"tags":[748,393,4884,2465,285,1170,1171,20288,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-64303","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-manchester","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-england","10":"tag-great-britain","11":"tag-manchester","12":"tag-politics","13":"tag-rochdale","14":"tag-rochdale-council","15":"tag-rochdale-town-centre","16":"tag-uk","17":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114429796446112807","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64303","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64303"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64303\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/64304"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64303"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=64303"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=64303"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}