Prison 'a barrier' to area's regeneration plans

Plans have been set out to regenerate an inner city area that houses one of the UK's most violent prisons and was once described as the nation's "counterfeit capital".

The joint proposals by Manchester and Salford councils for the area around Strangeways and Cheetham Hill include 7,000 new homes, health facilities and a public park.

Manchester City Council leader Bev Craig said the Grade II listed prison HMP Manchester was a "key barrier" to the plans.

But she said the council still planned to "deliver huge change" to the area which she described as "brimming with potential".

The councils have released a development plan for the area, which covers Salford's Cambridge Industrial Estate in Broughton, and Bury New Road, Cheetham Hill Road, and Cheetham Park in Manchester.

It is hoped the proposals could create an extra 4,500 jobs for the two cities.

The Ministry of Justice has previously said it had no plans to move HMP Manchester, still referred to locally as Strangeways, despite calls from Craig to move the jail elsewhere.

The Grade II listed building in Southall Street, near Cheetham Hill, which accommodates 750 men, was first built in the 1860s but has since been modernised.

The proposals come after a concerted police clean-up of the Cheetham Hill area, formerly a hotspot for counterfeit goods.

"We know this area has challenges, including the prison that presents a key barrier to the regeneration of the area," Craig said.

But she said the local authorities now had an opportunity to "support businesses to grow and prosper in these neighbourhoods".

This included the building of thousands of "council, social and genuinely affordable" homes, the council leader added.

The plans are set to be discussed by both Salford and Manchester councils next week.

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