Transformation of Heywood square kicks off £20m regen
Conlon Construction is in the early stages of giving Peine Square a makeover, the first phase of a project to breathe new life into the town.
Heywood’s Peine Square will get new planting, paving, and lighting, as well as the installation of informal play areas thanks to a chunk of the £20m earmarked for the town through the government’s Plan for Neighbourhoods initiative.
Tiered seating, performance and exhibition areas, a mini stage and a power supply will ensure that the area can be used for public events, according to Rochdale Council.
The Heywood Town Board, a local group made up of community members, local councillors and Heywood and Middleton MP, Elsie Blundell, has been set up to come up with a strategy on how to spend the rest of the £20m over its 10-year allocation.
Brian Davies, chair of the Heywood Town Board, said: “This is a fantastic project to kickstart the delivery of this £20m investment programme and we know from consultations carried out with residents that they welcomed the proposals for Peine Square.
“We’re still formulating our longer-term plans, but we know that making the area more attractive is a big priority for Heywood people, and this project very much fits the bill. I’m looking forward to the transformation we will see.”
Outside of the Plan for Neighbourhoods, Rochdale Council and its development agency are nearing completion of the revamped civic centre, while the £4m rebuild and restoration of the historic Queen’s Park Bridge has already wrapped up.
Planit, K2, Sutcliffe, and Steven Hunt are on the project team. Conlon Construction is delivering the civic centre project as well as the Peine Square scheme.
Darren Lee, commercial director at Conlon Construction said: “We’re proud to be delivering the Peine Square project, right at the heart of Heywood town centre, alongside our ongoing work on the civic centre. Together, these schemes will transform a key part of the town into a vibrant, welcoming space for everyone.
“This additional work also gives us the opportunity to boost local employment, create new training and apprenticeship opportunities, and contribute to the project’s biodiversity through tree planting and landscaping. It’s a privilege to play a continued role in Heywood’s regeneration, and we’re excited to see the area take shape.”
Greater Manchester regenerating its towns
By Anonymous
That’s great news for Heywood
By Anonymous
Why don’t you help keep the reform club 🤔 afloat as it’s on its knees. My be irrelevant to you but generations have passed through there and it’s one of the only if not the only place left in Heywood where the elderly can socialy get together. I hope this comment doesn’t fall on deaf ears but probably will.
By Howard
The town is just hairdressers and takeaways all the genuine retailers have all closed down ,need to attract new business in the town so people will stay and shop instead of traveling elsewhere.
By Anonymous
More tragic bottle necks, cause by poor planning
By Anonymous
The proposals are not welcome for most people
There are very few shops in Heywood and people need to go to other nearby towns to get what they need. Improving the town is pointless. The civic hall is being doubled in size just to use up the money. They can’t fill half of it for local shows at the moment. Heywood. No shops and a large number of buildings under construction to add to the mayhem . Can’t you see the obvious..
By T Scott
I live in heywood and the work is comeing on nicely. Looking forward to see it when finished xx
By Susan hogg