£2 billion regeneration programme on track for success

In the shadow of Manchester"s gleaming glass architecture, a £2 billion regeneration programme immediately east of the city centre is making its own mark according to eminent urban regeneration guru, Professor Michael Parkinson. In a report published today he describes New East Manchester (NEM) as "a very good example of a truly comprehensive urban regeneration company".

Four years on from successfully hosting the Commonwealth Games, a catalyst for the regeneration of this part of the city, NEM is driving forward the transformation of an area nearly 2,000 hectares in size with public and private sector investment totalling an average of £200 million a year. The report highlights the fact that the hosting of the Commonwealth Games together with the City Council prioritising east Manchester has been critical to the success of the programme so far. East Manchester has in fact "added value" to the economic success of the city centre over the past decade.

Covering an area just east of the city centre to the boundary with Tameside, the strategic framework for east Manchester links in to Manchester City Council"s overall vision and strategy for Manchester and the city region.

Now in its sixth year, the urban regeneration company is on track to achieve its target to build 12,500 homes in its first 10-15 years, with more than 3,500 new homes already completed or on site and a further 6,000 in the pipeline. In the first five years more than 3,000 jobs have been created or safeguarded, unemployment is down from 14.2 per cent to 5.7 per cent and 500 local companies supported. The area has two new primary schools and two state-of-the art health clinics are near completion.

Professor Michael Parkinson, commenting on New East Manchester Ltd, said: "The success of New East Manchester tells us a lot about how we should manage our hard-pressed urban areas in future. NEM provides many important lessons about the processes, people, politics, and powers that are required to achieve successful urban regeneration. It is a very good example of a truly comprehensive urban regeneration company. Their ability to make a real difference to both the physical and social environment of this important part of the city in a relatively short space of time is remarkable and pays testament to the working relationship between New East Manchester and their funding partners Manchester City Council, NWDA and English Partnerships and the private sector. This is not only a fine example of best practice but raises the bar for urban regeneration."

Robert Hough, Chairman of New East Manchester Ltd said: "We were very fortunate to have Professor Michael Parkinson undertake this work. As a leading figure in urban regeneration, we could not have found anyone better placed to conduct our review. Our task is to regenerate a huge area of former industrial concentration, very close to the centre of one of the most dynamic cities in the UK. Our holistic approach is clearly working. We have achieved a tremendous amount but there is still a great deal more to do to ensure we leave a lasting legacy for the communities who themselves have contributed so much. Vital investment needs to continue to guarantee a sustainable future for the area."

Paul Spooner, Regional Director of English Partnerships said: "NEM works to a well developed strategy and sees the bigger picture, which this report clearly indicates. Partnership work, across both the public and private sector, is also key to success. Without it regeneration on this scale simply cannot be achieved. English Partnerships is pleased to continue to support NEM and the URC programme nationally."

Maurice Gubbins, Northwest Regional Development Agency Policy and Partnerships Manager, said: "New East Manchester is a real success story for England"s Northwest. This report highlights the impressive scale of innovative, high impact regeneration activity that has taken place in East Manchester since its establishment which is creating significant numbers of new jobs, levering in major investment and importantly, greatly improving the quality of life for local residents. It is through strong and effective partnership working that we have been able to achieve these levels of success and I am sure that East Manchester will continue to witness these benefits for many years to come."

Projects highlighted in the report as examples of successful regeneration include Central Park, Sportcity, New Islington and Beswick Neighbourhood Planning and the Education Programme.

Central Park - will ultimately provide 1.4 million sq ft of business space and generate up to 10,000 new jobs. The report stated that "many of the key goals on site, acquisition, remediation and provision of a high quality business park with good maintenance arrangements have been successfully achieved".

Sportcity - thanks to the successful delivery of the Commonwealth Games, Sportcity became an important catalyst for regeneration in east Manchester. In the report Sportcity is described as becoming "a new regional magnet and district centre".

Beswick Neighbourhood Planning - on completion, over 1,100 homes will have been created alongside a new high school and improved retail facilities. Professor Parkinson remarked that Beswick "is an example in microcosm of the added value that NEM brings to the overall regeneration programme - pulling together funding partners, engaging private sector and attempting to secure holistic redevelopment".

New Islington - a 12.5 hectare site featuring an eco park, new canals, apartments, houses and a health clinic. Professor Parkinson observed that New Islington "has positively influenced private sector attitudes".

Education Programme - From a baseline pass rate of 19 per cent A*-C grades, educational attainment has risen dramatically to over 50 per cent. The report stated the education programme is "one of NEM"s success stories, with its multi-stranded approach meeting virtually all its targets". Two east Manchester primary schools were included in the top five most improved schools nationally in the Government"s recent performance league table. St Anne"s RC Primary School in Ancoats topped the table, while a mile down the road, Nicholas Varley Community School in Miles Platting came fifth, making them two of the "most improved schools" in the country, having made the most sustained improvement since 2003.

For more information or to download an executive summary of the report visit www.neweastmanchester.com.

Ends

For further information contact Roz Hughes at New East Manchester on 0161 223 1155

Notes to editors

Copies of the Executive Summary of the New East Manchester Evaluation are available on request.

New East Manchester Ltd (NEM) is an Urban Regeneration Company - a partnership between Manchester City Council, English Partnerships and the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA). It is NEM"s role to implement the Regeneration Framework, secure the required public and private funding, lead on specific major development projects as well as co-ordinate the range of regeneration and renewal initiatives in the area.

Professor Michael Parkinson (BA, MA [Econ]) is Professor of Urban Affairs, Liverpool John Moores University. He has over twenty years experience of writing about cities and urban regeneration in Europe and the USA. He is Director of the ESRC CITIES Programme and has led major evaluations of government urban policy for the Department of the Environment and for DGXVI. He led the research on cities for EUROPE 2000 and EUROPE 2000+. He acts as advisor on urban affairs to the European Commission, OECD, Eurocities, the ODPM, the House of Commons Select Committee on the Environment, the Audit Commission and the Local Government Boundary Commission. He lectures widely both nationally and internationally and is a frequent contributor to the media about urban regeneration.

New East Manchester (NEM) was one of the first three Urban Regeneration Companies designated by government in 2000 in response to Lord Roger"s Urban Task Force Report. The others were in Liverpool and Sheffield. Since then the number of companies has increased to 23.

Roz Hughes
Press Officer
New East Manchester Ltd
187 Grey Mare Lane
Beswick
Manchester M11 3ND

E-mail r.hughes1@manchester.gov.uk

tel: 0161 223 1155
fax: 0161 230 8966

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