Cabinet made right choice

ON Tuesday evening the council cabinet decided that Littleborough is the site of choice for a new secondary school and on this occasion they made the right choice.

The alternative option was to choose Rutherford Park and build a second school in Wardle.

The decision will impact directly on many of our young people across the Pennines Township.

It will also impact upon everyone who lives in and commutes around Littleborough, Wardle and their environs.

A school in Littleborough will service the areas of Dean Head, Summit, Barnes Meadows, Shopwood, Todmorden Road, Calderbrook, Grove, Central Littleborough, Ealees, Blackstone Edge, Shore and many of the planned new build locations.

A school in Littleborough will reduce commuting for many, it will reduce congestion and it will reduce the carbon footprint for the area.

It will be within walking or cycling distance for the areas mentioned and, the benefits of that, are in keeping with the

Greater Manchester Mayor’s “made to move” strategy - something I fully endorse.

Access and egress on and off the site need careful consideration but with some thought given to the entire perimeter when deciding upon those access and egress points I do believe the benefits mentioned will be achieved.

Conversely, building a second school in Wardle would create substantial congestion on roads that are often bursting at the seams already.

I travel through Littleborough and towards Rochdale around 9am regularly and I know how difficult and frustrating that journey can be.

No additional young people would have the option of walking or cycling to school because those who could walk or cycle to the new build could do so equally to Wardle Academy.

Rutherford Park is immediately adjacent to Wardle Academy.

New housing has already been approved on a number of sites within the catchment area;

In the valley off New Street,

On the old Akzo Chemicals site,

At the bottom of Union Road

And on Phoenix Street.

Building has not yet been completed on the Birch Hill estate, public consultation has taken place about further building off Smithy Bridge Road and I have no doubt with the need for additional housing further developments will come to the fore before a new school can be built – all of those developments add to our already congested commuter routes and it is imperative for the approved location to take cognizance of those factors.

There is a huge burden of responsibility on the controlling Labour council to ensure there can be no change of heart regarding the site of choice.

A second school in Wardle would be disastrous.

The Littleborough site has a history of use as a site for secondary education.

I attended Littleborough High School for five years and the physical characteristics of the site were never problematic.

A school in Littleborough compliments existing provision in Wardle and Milnrow giving the Pennines a fair distribution of provision.

The DFE are understandably risk averse and as such they will not fund a school where the public do not want it.

I have no doubt, building on Rutherford Park would attract significant and well founded objections.

The public would see building a second school adjacent to an existing one as ludicrous and not building one in Littleborough (which is our area of greatest need) as a missed opportunity.

There is a long way to go before a new school will be built and I am pleased with the initial decision.

I will, however, monitor progress on this very

This picture of Holy Trinity Church in Littleborough was submitted by Peter Sykes. Email your pictures to us at rochdaleobserver@menmedia.co. uk or upload them to flickr.com/groups/rochdalepics closely until such time as it is completed. Coun John Taylor Wardle and West Littleborough

BE MORE OPEN ABOUT FIASCO

I WOULD like to challenge our town manager and our town planning officer about the fiasco of this new centre.

All we have had over the past few years is 60 per cent filled and 40 per cent under advanced negotiations.

These have been going on for at least nine years.

We started off with three shops and one cinema – eight years later, four shops, one cinema. Three of those are relocations. Why all the secrecy? It’s ironic that the people of Rochdale know more about the plans of other towns than what we know of the plans for our town.

Also I would like to know where the number of £17 million pound into our local economy has come from?

Also the delay in the new market.?

Three separate dates for completion and now not expected to be complete before August,which year?.

So let’s have some openess about all this fiasco.

Also change your script writer. Mark Glendinning