We want everyone to have a say on plans
RBH has started a conversation with people in College Bank and Lower Falinge about how best to invest in the area and what changes might be needed.
We know uncertainty can cause concern but it is only right that local residents shape proposals from the outset. This means we are talking to the community before there are any clear options, seeking views on how best to invest to provide not only better quality homes but also better opportunities for residents.
We do not want to miss out on any opportunity for the investment that central Rochdale needs. We are making the case for additional money for these communities to both central Government and Greater Manchester and want to make sure the big RBH investment planned is spent in the best way. Architects Levitt Bernstein are advising on options to improve buildings and places; refurbishment, new homes, street layout and replacing or remodelling homes as well as how homes could be managed differently.
Many working age people in College Bank and Lower Falinge are in work but some feel they miss out on job opportunities. A respected charity, the RSA, has been asked by RBH to look at how social investment could help residents get back to work, get promoted, or gain skills to take the next step up. If regeneration helps create jobs and apprenticeships we want local people to be first in the queue.
As we develop options, we will continue to ask residents for their views. As well as providing quality neighbourhoods that attract new households, we must provide high-quality homes for existing residents with rents and service charges they can afford..
College Bank and Lower Falinge have seen some negative headlines in the past. We want a future where they represent the best of the town; high-quality, well-designed homes which are popular, affordable and represent a confident future for Rochdale.
We want everyone to have their say – visit rochdale.commonplace.is Gareth Swarbrick Chief executive RBH
PREDICTABLE BLAME GAME
IT was so easily predictable that the leader of Rochdale Council would blame Tory Government cuts to local authorities for a five per cent increase in council tax (Observer, Saturday 18 February).
Just one question to Councillor Farnell: are your recently enhanced council wages (sorry, allowances) getting into your bank account on time? Ian Ogden Whitworth
SADDENED BY CHANGES
I WAS reading the Rochdale Observer last Saturday and I was sad to read about all the proposed market changes.
I visit the market on a regular basis and on the Tuesday following this I visited the market and was talking to a number of the flea market traders, some of whom had been standing on the second hand market for 10 to 20 years. When they were moved from Rochdale Exchange two years ago to their currently location, all were under the impression that this would be temporary until a more permanent home could be found.
They were especially pleased when the new location was identified (The Butts), until further information indicated that the new market was going to be a specialist market and no mention of second hand or any other options.
The current market traders have turned up in all weathers, sometimes atrocious weather, to provide a service to the people of Rochdale who do not always have the means to purchase items in large amounts, clothing, food and other items.
Rochdale is the in the top five poorest towns in England. I believe that the market is essential for lots of people who come into town where they can buy items for a few pence or pounds, interact with people on a face to face basis and go home happy and with their purchases.
A market which is only caters to a specialised tastes would price others out of our town, which I feel is a disgrace. Elaine Dawson Kings Road
IMPRESSED BY INQUIRY
AS someone who participated in the enquiry entitled ‘Operation Clifton’ in which I was interviewed for some two hours, I must say that I do not recognise Mr Simon Danczuk’s description of it as being ‘a shambles from start to finish’ (see Rochdale Observer Feb. 11th, 2017).
Others who were interviewed have been similarly impressed with the rigour of the investigation.
Mr Danczuk MP has said of the Greater Manchester Police (GMP) interviewers: ‘They’ve wasted a lot of public money trying to protect their reputation...’
Yet my understanding is that the purpose of Operation Clifton was to discover what Rochdale Council knew about Knowl View school and if there had been a failure by the local authority officers to follow up on concerns over the reports of possible abuse with regard to some of the children resident at the institution in the 1980s and 90s. In other words for Mr Danczuk to now appear to suggest the police were involved in a ‘cover-up’ to ‘protect their (own) reputations’ is more of the theatre of the