Demolition starts on last Hattersley tower block

Specialist Connell Brothers will today start work on taking down Tameside Court, the last remaining tower block in Hattersley.

Demolishing the 11-storey building signals the next phase in the regeneration of the well-known Manchester overspill estate, a project that to date has seen £200m invested by partners Tameside Council, Peak Valley Housing Association, Symphony Housing Group and the Homes & Communities Agency.

Tameside Court is being demolished using Connell Brothers’ specialist Caterpillar 375 customised high reach demolition excavator. The excavator weighs 90 tons and can work at heights of up to 40m. As part of the project, Connell Brothers has already demolished the former Four in Hand pub.

Since 2001, when it demolished seven Hattersley tower blocks, Connell Brothers has removed over 500 houses and buildings from the area. New facilities introduced as part of the area’s redevelopment include the Hub community centre, Hattersley Library, a Tesco supermarket and council offices. Barratt Homes has sold more than 260 new homes in Hattersley as part of a programme that will see more than 800 houses built and the area’s tenure mix changed significantly.

Phil Corris, managing director of Peak Valley Housing Association, said: “The demolition of the last tower block marks another historic milestone in the rebirth of the area as a place where people want to live. This will make way for the redevelopment of the old district centre with new homes for rent and sale.

“Construction of new homes on the site is programmed to start later this year. This hugely successful regeneration project is a fine example of what can be achieved through close partnership working and could not have been possible without the support of Tameside Council and the local community.”

The project’s quantity surveyor is Simon Fenton Partnership.