Ashton Town Centre Draft Strategic Framework

TOWN CENTRE

DRAFT STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK

(St Petersfield Development Prospectus, 2021)

1 INTRODUCTION

Ashton-under-Lyne (Ashton) is the principal town of Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council and is situated approximately six miles east of Manchester City Centre. The attractively located and strategically important 23ha site encompasses the core of Ashton town centre, including the rail station and bus and tram interchange. Ashton is a town known for its vibrant market, historic character, stunning countryside at the foot of the Pennine hills, extensive canal network and strong community spirit. The market hall, dating from 1828, is the heart of the town and plays a key role in attracting users to the town through its retail offer.

Ashton town centre is a crucial component to the economic, environmental, and social wellbeing of the Tameside borough. Building on this, Ashton has been identified as a major growth component within Tameside, which will enable it to benefit from, and contribute to, wider growth in the Greater Manchester conurbation.

This report provides a strategic vision and framework, grounded in contextual research, to a forthcoming masterplan for the site. The report defines the key objectives and actions which will realise the town centre’s vision to be Proudly Ashton, Boldly part of Greater Manchester and Welcoming to all. This vision will enable Ashton town centre to take advantage of its unique character and community; adapt and grow to become more diverse; and become a place where more people live, work and do business, shop and spend quality time.

Ashton’s strong identity is intertwined with the town’s history and heritage. Enhancing the townscape can put Ashton back on the map.

Historyand Character

Ashton benefits from the connectivity and convenience of a city region, but for too long has been designed around cars. Rebalancing streets can make the town centre more walkable, sociable, healthy and green.

Planning for a diversity of uses and users, including homes, services and employment opportunities to rediscover, reshape and reinvent the town centre.

Local priorities are at the heart of Ashton’s place-led transformation.

Albion Church

Arcades and Ladysmith Shopping Centre

Ashton Moss Retail Park

Ashton Canal

Ashton Rail Station

Ashton Bus and Tram Interchange

St Petersfield Development

Manchester City Centre

Stalybridge

Market Square

Old Town

Holy Trinity

2 STRATEGIC CONTEXT

The site within Ashton’s town centre is located six miles east of Manchester City Centre, immediately beyond the M60 ring road. It is one of eight Greater Manchester primary towns with a designated importance for civic, amenity and retail provision within the borough of Tameside.

The site benefits from local, regional and national connections by road, rail, Metrolink tram network and local bus network. There are long distance walking and cycling routes along the canals and the National Cycle network that facilitate access to the countryside, but these direct links to and through the site are severed by Ashton’s Northern Bypass.

Ashton town centre has a large primary catchment size of 136,000 (Javelin Group, 2013), but travel to the town centre is predominantly by car, with 62.5% of trips of 1500 people surveyed arriving by car compared to 25% by public transport (HollissVincent, 2018).

Current and proposed strategic transport connections

Ashton town centre catchment

50,606

Population of Ashton-under-Lyne

8.2% an increase between 2011-2021

30%

of households in Tameside don’t have access to a car

Tameside College

Number 1 further education provider in Greater Manchester

Tameside’s younger and older population is growing faster compared to the national average (Under 16 and Over 65)

The main employment sectors are health , retail and manufacturing

St Petersfield’s vision is to develop a vibrant mixeduse business district to complement Ashton town centre with high quality public realm.

(St Petersfield Development Prospectus, 2021)

(St Petersfield Development Prospectus, 2021)

Ashton Town Centre’s Walking, cycling and public realm improvements.

(Office for National Statistics, 2022)

(TFGM, 2021)

(Department of Education, 2019)

(Hatch Regeneris, 2020)

(TFGM, 2023)

3 AREA & LOCAL CONTEXT DEVELOPMENT & MORPHOLOGY

The shape, form and local patterns of development reveal the changing morphology of Ashton-Under-Lyne. The persistence of the permeable, well defined block and street pattern in the compact Old Town facilitates walkability and is an asset to the town centre’s heritage and character.

In contrast, the demolition of dense terrace housing in the 1960’s has created the coarse urban grain characteristic of the retail core, the clearest example being the large-mass of the Arcades and Ladysmith shopping centres.

Now, across Ashton, the urban form is fragmented by the demolition of traditional urban blocks, meanwhile spaces used mainly as surface car parks, and in-fill development. Fragmentation is also perpetuated by the perceived need to provide surface car parks. Only some of the routes in and around the market square remain legible.

Urban Form 1890

1413 Market

Old Street

Ashton-Stalybridge Tram Tameside Local Studies and Archives Centre (No date)

3.1 AREA & LOCAL CONTEXT

LAND USE & ACTIVITY

There are large areas of residential housing surrounding the site, showing its large catchment area and history as a centre for providing key services to the local community. However, the town’s declining visitor numbers suggests that the town’s current offering is not attracting people as successfully as it once did, particularly as consumption practices have changed due to online shopping and the pandemic.

There is currently a lack of residential, commercial and leisure uses in the town centre, and an over-reliance on retail, which is noticeable due to the inactivity outside of core hours. This presents an opportunity to provide more diversity in uses that will attract locals and visitors from across the region into the centre for a range of necessary, optional, and social activities.

Key Amenities

63% of ground-floor space in Ashton is retail in comparison to 31% regionally and 43% nationally

There are several key amenities in and around the site, including a cluster of healthcare facilities to the east and numerous supermarkets which would support new residential development in the centre. The town has a strong educational offering, with several primary schools in close distance to the site, as well as two six-form colleges and a further education college. The colleges bring young people into the town during the week for their studies but there is a lack of optional leisure uses providing a reason to stay, with the nearest cinema and high-street restaurants situated in Ashton Moss Leisure Park.

10% annual decrease in visitors to Ashton town centre (2017-2021)

Tameside MBC (2021)

The facilities map shows the substantial amount of land in the centre that is dedicated to high-street retail uses and begins to explain why the town becomes disjointed when the main shopping centres are closed.

There is also several car parking options to the south and west of the site, which presents an opportunity to develop the surface car parking that is currently occupying a sizeable amount of land within the masterplan area.

Ladysmith Shopping Centre

Friday, 12pm

The focussed activity around the market square creates an inward orientated retail core. There is a high amount of day-time activity inside the shopping centres, but it fails to disperse across other parts of the town and creates a vacuum of activity outside of retail hours. This along with a lack of diverse uses in and around the market leads to a poor night-time economy, with most establishments situated around the periphery. These are mainly pubs or takeaways, with a low number of restaurants or leisure/cultural venues for a town centre. This creates an unwelcoming experience in the market square and around some key routes to the south due to a lack of people and no residential frontage.

The dominance of retail uses and decrease in visitors has led to a high number of vacant units across the town. This combined with several buildings that are in a poor state of repair creates a patchwork of active and blank frontages on key routes. There is also an issue with the scale and formation of the retail block that creates large areas of blank frontage and a physical and visual disconnect with the area to the west.

For the masterplan vision to be successful, significant restructuring of the retail core will be required to create a vibrant town centre at all times of the day and to ensure the public realm is of the highest quality with active ground-floor uses.

Day and Night Activity Areas

Friday, 12pm

Friday, 8pm

17% vacant units in Ashton town centre compared with UK average of 12.2%

Building Frontages

Vacant unit on Old Street

Warrington Street

Back of Ladysmith Penny Meadow

Fletcher Square

3.2 AREA & LOCAL CONTEXT

FLOW & MOVEMENT

Car-centred design has isolated Ashton’s attractive, historic town centre within an ugly, dangerous, noisy and polluted road-dominated environment. The extensive primary road network enables motor vehicle traffic to directly access the town centre via Wellington Road, Albion Road, Oldham Road. However, this has created heavily trafficked edges of the site, and the lack of safe pedestrian crossing points reduces the overall quality of travelling into the town centre by active modes. High traffic volumes and speeds on Albion Road create poor levels of actual and perceived safety for people who walk or cycle. Designing primarily for vehicle access rather than people has also created physical barriers to pedestrian movement including multi-storey and surface car parks and service access yards.

The site benefits from excellent connectivity by sustainable transport links. The bus and tram interchange are an attractive gateway into the site, however connections between the interchange and the market place are poor, with the most direct route being through the Arcades shopping centre. The other gateways are defined by high traffic volumes and indirect crossings.

The town centre has a walkable pedestrian core and is permeable in areas of well-defined urban grain, with a number of key nodes offering a choice of direct routes along established streets. The Arcades and Ladysmith shopping centres provide pedestrian through-routes, but lack the welcoming qualities found in a traditional high street. Across the site, poorly integrated open service yards front onto key pedestrian routes and negatively impact on the quality of the route.

Vehicular and public transport route hierarchy

Out of hours access into the wider town centre is restricted by the Arcades opening hours, when this main route is severed between 6pm – 8.30am and alternative route options are longer and poorer quality.

GATEWAYS

Two of the key arrival gateways into the site (the train station and the junction with Penny Meadow) are severely undermined by the severance created by the northern bypass. This discourages visitors to the town centre from choosing to arrive via public transport or on foot – entrenching the damaging dominance of the car in the area.

42%

Arrival experience from Ashton Station

The junction above is designed for optimum efficiency for private vehicles and leaves pedestrians to navigate a confusing and unwelcoming sea of constricted traffic islands in order to get to the town centre. This undermines what could be a attractive and welcoming arrival point to Ashton –especially with the proximity of the GII* listed Albion Warehouse on the Junction.

The arrival experience from Ashton Rail Station is particularly poor as one is presented with a fragmented townscape dominated by the northern bypass and the back of the major Tameside One and Arcades Shopping Centre developments. To enter the town centre there is at least a choice of routes, with the newly renovated Warrington Street offering the most attractive and legible option that is direct and includes green infrastructure. Less clear/direct routes also available through the semi-private Tameside 1 area or following Wellington Road to the left and around the back of the old town hall.

Arrival experience from north-east Ashton

(TfGM, 2021)

North East Gateway

3.3 AREA & LOCAL CONTEXT FLOW & MOVEMENT

Ashton Interchange (opened August 2020), currently served by 26 bus routes, provides a modern, attractive gateway to the town with planting, local artwork and quality surface materials. Physical separation from the rail station means that passengers must cross the busy Wellington Road. The most direct pedestrian route is only 200m journey but involves 6 crossing points. The rail station is also visually disconnected from the interchange.

Major roads and junctions create significant severance between surrounding neighbourhoods and the town centre leading to road safety issues for people walking or cycling. The footway is cluttered with street furniture and junction crossings are confusing. High levels of congestion on arterial routes create a hostile environment and causes poor air quality.

Katherine Street is a busy route into the site, despite the poor quality arrival experience into the pedestrian core. The footway is too narrow for the high volume of pedestrians and too much of the space is given over to parked cars. Café tables and chairs look out over the back of the Arcades and the service yard.

Pedestrian Access

Successful streets

Partially successful streets

Poor quality streets

Pedestrian Movement

3.4 AREA & LOCAL CONTEXT

SERIAL VISION

The arrival experience at the busy Ashton Interchange is welcoming, clean and comfortable. The building, open in 2020, is modern and light with clear wayfinding. It is a high quality gateway to the town centre.

Leaving the Interchange, the route takes pedestrians across a zebracrossing and towards a concealed entrance to the Arcades shopping centre. The path is overlooked by fire exits and air conditioning units on the back of the Arcades.

This serial vision illustrates a typical journey on-foot from Ashton bus and tram interchange, through Ashton’s shopping centres and into the market square. This popular, direct pedestrian route has been chosen to illustrate the frequent change in quality of the public realm and legibility of the route. This route is only available to take between 8am – 6pm when the shopping centres are open.

This key point in the route transitions between the Arcades and Ladysmith shopping centres. Pedestrians are forced to cross a busy service yard with vehicles turning and cars using the space as a drop-off zone. Costa Coffee provides positive active frontage, but the enclosure created by the low ceiling creates a cramped space.

The route turns left down the narrow Mercian Mall. There is a strong sense of enclosure and reduced light penetration created by the 3 storey buildings, making the street feel claustrophobic and dark. Vacant units line the route and the street smells as a result of birds nesting in the upper storeys. The view of the market hall clock is visible in the distance.

Inside the Arcades is busy with shoppers. The vaulted ceiling creates a light and airy space. However, the route becomes confusing due to the layout, frontages and lack of wayfinding.

Emerging from Mercian Mall into the market square, the comfortable enclosure of the square is complimented by unobstructed views of the sky. The sense of arrival is clarified by views of the market kiosks and the landmark market hall.

ASH TON

UNDER-LYNE

3.5 AREA & LOCAL CONTEXT

PUBLIC REALM & OPEN SPACE

There are quality green spaces within walking distance of the site, ranging from larger recreational spaces such as King George V Playing Fields in the north to smaller, community parks to the west. Connectivity to these green spaces is important for future residential development in the town centre and strengthening the pedestrian crossings across the busy arterial routes will be key as they currently form a barrier.

There is potential to create a public realm network to the west of the site by strengthening the pedestrian experience along historic routes such as Katherine Street and Old Street, which would connect residential areas to the town centre and the strong, walkable network around the market square.

Public Realm and Green Infrastructure Network

(Friends of King George V Playing Fields, 2015)

Canal and River Trust. (n.d.).

Portland Basin Henry Square, St Petersfield St Michael’s Square Oldham Road Garden Market Avenue Stamford Street

Memorial Gardens

There are a several existing public spaces within the site that vary in quality and purpose. A strong network is clustered around the market square and the pedestrianised zone. There are also several pieces of public art, statues and plaques that are concentrated in this area and contribute to its character.

There is an existing network of mature trees that lines Market Street, Old Street and onto Gas Street. These trees should be saved in any future development and extended further to create a more comfortable pedestrian experience around the site.

Future development should aim to improve the quality of the main market square (see section 3.6) and the provision of public realm on both the east and west of the site where its currently of poor quality.

Site Public Realm Audit

Penny Meadow (A-B) is a direct route into the market area from the east and has positive frontage. The two-way traffic and on-street parking leaves little room for pedestrians. This is compounded with businesses placing advertising boards on the pavement, taking space from the public realm.

The section of Old Street (C-D) behind the market square is closed to traffic (other than servicing), which allows more pedestrian space and businesses to have outdoor seating. Three-story buildings and street trees also create a positive sense of enclosure and comfort. However, its position in relation to the market square means servicing areas face onto the street, creating blank frontage and an issue with bins and vehicles encroaching on public realm.

Warrington Street Node Old Street/Market Avenue

Bus and Tram Interchange Warrington Street Pocket Park

Fletcher Square

Clarendon Sixth Form College

Penny Meadow

Old Street

THE MARKET SQUARE

Ashton’s historic market is at the heart of Ashton’s civic and retail core. The market hall, kiosks and civic space are enclosed by surrounding two storey development, including a number of prominent historic buildings. The indoor market hall is busy with people, but the Market Square is an uninviting, hard, inflexible and characterless space that doesn’t attract people to browse, socialise, dwell and enjoy.

In recent years, the Market Square has struggled to attract new visitors and investment. The Grade II Listed Town Hall is closed, requiring extensive renovation, and the temporary adjacent public realm is a poor quality gateway into the square. Defensible design techniques are employed across the market square, aimed at reducing anti-social behaviour, but instead create a sterile public space.

Feedback from Love Ashton engagement event Saturday 13th March 2022

The excessive amount of guard railing, signage and bollards fragment the open space, restrict pedestrian movement and create a visually cluttered urban scene. The uncoordinated distribution of street furniture adds to the illegibility of the public realm. Old bins, hostile mitigation blocks and negatively impact on the quality of the space.

The lack of evening and night time activity from buildings fronting the Market Square reduces natural surveillance and increases the perception that it is an unsafe space. There is insufficient and broken lighting in the square.

Outdoor market kiosks provide active frontage between 9am - 5pm, but when closed they obstruct views and create dark blind corners that attract antisocial behaviour.

The Market Square at night

The surfacing in the Market Square is incoherent and low quality. Vehicle access for servicing has caused deterioration, including uneven levels and pot holes; pooling of rain water; and creates accessibility issues for people who use mobility aids.

AREA & LOCAL CONTEXT

CHARACTER STUDY

RETAIL CORE

High Street

Retail/Cafes

Market Square/Hall

Town Hall

Central Node

Shopping centre

Pedestrianed

Open public spaces

Places for rest

Lack of night time activity

Red Brick, concrete, Sandstone.

Trees but lack of quality G.I

Pre 1900 histroical buildings

1960s shopping centres

1 2

OLD TOWN

Mixed-use area.

Office and residential

Cafe/Pub/Retail

2-3 story

Prominate grid formation

Key route to market square

Narrow streets

Enclosure

Lack of night time activity

Pedestrian friendly.

Historical facades

1890s-1970s

Art network

TOWN CENTRE EAST

Mixed-use area

Retail, housing, health, pubs, car parks, education and public service.

Penny Meadow corridor

Some night activity

Mixture of historic and modern buildings.

Key bus and pedestrian routes

Gateway to retail core. 2-3 story buildings.

Some fragmented grain. Red brick or modern glass buildings.

1900s-2018

One Building Landmark key views of churches.

DELAMERE

Mixed-use

Including commercial, residential, leisure and light industrial

Fragmented urban form

Mostly 2-4 story

High scale residential block Hippodrome Theatre

Old Library

Poor quality buildings

Mostly 1960-2000s Katherine street leads to back of shopping centre.

Services routes

Small green park

PORTLAND BASIN

Historic industrial area

Regeneration area

Key views

Tourism

1800-1900s

HOLY TRINITY

Residential

Strong linear urban form

Red brick, 1900-2000

Community Park

Pre 1900 Church

2-3 stories

RETAIL & TRANSPORT CORRIDOR

Transport corridor

Main Vehicle access to Ashton from Manchester City Centre.

Transport hubs

Tram and Rail routes

Industrial Retail parks

Fragmented dispersed urban form

2000s

Ikea main landmark and key view from site

ST PETERSFIELD

Area of regeneration

Industrial/Residential

St Petersfield

Development plans

Gateway to town centre

Fragmented urban form

2-6 stories

1800-1900s

Ashton Old Baths is a key landmark and a key view from site.

OUTER RESIDENTIAL

Highly populated residential areas.

Community facilities, including schools, churches and parks. Higher gradient with views over Ashton Town Centre.

INDUSTRIAL BLUE CORRIDOR

Industrial land

Brownfield sites

Blue Network

Ashton Canal and River Tame

Rail Corridor

Canal cycle route

3.8 AREA & LOCAL CONTEXT

BUILDING HEIGHTS TRENDS & CHARACTER CHANGES

HERITAGE ASSETS

Ashton Town Centre has a rich array of heritage assets that extend beyond the five listed buildings in the site boundary to other historic buildings, public spaces, and enduring pedestrian routes.

The primary heritage assets that define the identity of the town centre within the framework site boundary are the Town Hall, Market Hall, Grade 1 Listed St Michael’s Parish Church, and Ashton Old Library punctuating the western gateway to the centre on Old Street. The key views of these assets should be protected and enhanced wherever possible with future development in the town centre.

The greatest clusters of historic townscape focus on the historic public spaces of the Market Square and St Michael’s square with richer detailing and strong frontages in these locations. Furthermore, enduring historic routes of key importance converge on these locations and there is a great opportunity to re-join Katherine Street and Penny Meadow to reinstate this lost key E-W connection for the town centre. Generally the region to the south and west of the site, which covers the Ashton Old Town Conservation Area, is where most of the remaining tertiary built historic fabric is located but is of varying townscape value and quality.

Enduring Historic Routes and Public Spaces:

Buildings, Spaces and Routes

Key Views of Primary Heritage Assets:

Ashton Old Library

Old Town Hall St Michael’s Church

Old Street

Market Avenue

St Michael’s Square

Former Mulberry Street

LEGIBILITY STUDY LOOK & FEEL

Street Furniture & Public Art:

Modern Landmarks

3.10 AREA & LOCAL CONTEXT

HARD & SOFT ANALYSIS

Hard: Buildings have significant townscape and/or community value. May require repair or modification.

Proposed Soft: Buildings have certain valuable attributes, but require reinvention to contribute masterplan vision.

Comfirmed Soft: Buildings and areas have no contribution to wider townscape and need significant restructuring to deliver a high quality masterplan.

Hard Route: Exsiting routes that will remain, subject to enhancements.

Ashton Retail Park large area of inefficient land-use, with poor quality design on a key arrival point to the site.

Ladysmith Shopping Centre

Despite its activity, buildings are of poor quality, have little contribution to the townscape and restrict a large area of land to a singular, daytime activity. Requires restructuring to improve connectivity and create a vibrant town centre.

Fletcher

Key public space with surrounding buildings of heritage significance. These may require repair or modification but retaining their character will be crucial for the final masterplan.

Historic landmark, iconic for the town centre, in need of serious repair.

Contemporary buildings which provide key civic functions in a convenient, central location. Improvements required to the public realm.

Surface Car parks

Complete redesign of surface car parks across the site. Potential plots for mixed-use blocks. Establishing a car-free town centre to support healthy living.

Penny Meadow

Direct route with good views into the Market Square. Enhancements needed to building quality.

Health Centres

Valuable community asset. Reinvention maybe necessary to adapt for population growth and rationalise the use of land.

Hippodrome Theatre

Square

Tameside One and Clarendon Sixth Form College

Significant changes and improvements are required in Ashton town centre to achieve the vision of the masterplan. The hard and soft plan details the areas that have been identified either for repair, reinvention, or complete restructuring to be successful. The main area for repair is in and around the market square, which has many buildings with a significant contribution to the townscape and the area’s historic function is important to the masterplan’s vision of a thriving town centre enriched by heritage. This includes well-established and historic routes that lead into the town centre and are an important part of the public realm network.

The major areas for restructuring are found in the west portion of the site, which is of lower density with many poor-quality buildings without townscape significance. The block format also impairs the positive pedestrian experience of the old town and creates a barrier to movement.

In order to achieve a successful future for Ashton, it is vital that this Strategic Framework document is compliant with and inspired by the most effective key national, regional and local planning policy with regards to placemaking, town centres vitality and economic opportunity.

National Design Guide (MHCLG, 2019)

The national design guide set outs how to achieve successful, lasting places through good design. The ten principles ensure that characterful, sustainable places are made that serve the needs of the community. This framework will serve to guide the future proposals for Ashton Town Centre.

National Planning Policy: A Strong Future for Town Centres

National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF)

July 2021

7. Ensuring the vitality of town centres

“86. Planning policies and decisions should support the role that town centres play at the heart of local communities, by taking a positive approach to their growth, management and adaptation.”

Build Back Better High Streets (MHCLG, 2021)

This 2021 Policy paper published during the Covid pandemic “sets out the government’s long-term plan to support the evolution of high streets into thriving places to work, visit and live”.

It sets out government action across 5 areas:

1) Breathing new life into empty buildings

2) Supporting high street businesses

3) Improving the public realm

4) Creating safe and clean spaces

5) Celebrating pride in local communities

Regional and Local Planning Policy: Ashton as key GM Town Centre

Places for Everyone (Aug 2021 - Emerging) Local / Tameside Policy - In Transition:

Policy JP 6 (Boosting Northern Competetiveness)

“4.47 - Investment in the town centres of the northern districts will be vital, particularly the main town centres (including) Ashton-under-Lyne.”

Policy JP-P 4 (New Retail and Leisure Uses in Town Centres)

“The existing hierarchy of centres for retail and leisure uses will be maintained and enhanced.”

Ashton Town Centre’s last strategic plan was adopted in 2010 (for up to 2027) and is now largely obsolete. Key development locally is the Ashton Mayoral Development Zone based upon the growth triangle of Ashton Moss, St Petersfield and Ashton Town Centre.

In expectance of a new local plan due to be published in 2024 by Tameside MBC a new town centres framework strategy has been published which reaffirms Ashton as the borough’s primary retail and commercial destination.

5 DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS

OPPORTUNITIES

CONSTRAINTS

Proudly Ashton boldly part of Greater Manchester welcoming to all.

A people and place-led transformation of Ashton-UnderLyne will bring new and old together to unlock the town centre’s untapped potential. This vision welcomes in a new chapter that builds on the town’s authentic character, unique history and local community to create a place of unrivalled prosperity and liveability.

Ashton’s regional location will allow it to become a prime destination for people who want the opportunities of living in a major city region but cherish being part of a characterful and lively town with a tight-knit community and be in touching distance of world-famous areas of natural beauty. This is about growth and change, but more importantly about the people of Ashton, newcomers and existing communities, young and old, living full, healthy lives in a place they can be proud to call home.

A unique market town; a one-of-a-kind market square

Rejuvenate the symbolic market square as a flagship public space and hub of activity, connection and community

Stockton-on-Tees

A place for all, to invest, grow and put down roots

Push the boundaries of what a market town can achieve by attracting exceptional business and talent to choose Ashton as their home within a global city region

A place where rich culture and heritage is celebrated

Breathe life back into Ashton’s historic fabric to nurture the next generation of creativity and culture

Connected to communities; connected to

Radically transforming moves, making sustainable the natural choice destination

Luton Hat Factory, Revoluton Arts

Nottingham

City Centre Masterplan, Heatherwick Studios

communities; to the city

transforming the way Ashton sustainable travel from front door to destination

A vibrant place; everything on your doorstep

Making Ashton town centre the neighbourhood of choice for living, shopping and enjoyment, day and night

Welcoming and inclusive places and spaces to spend time in

Where the town centre is attractive, comfortable and designed for everyone, not just someone

A healthy and green town centre

Creating a town centre fit for the future in the face of global challenges

Masterplan,

Altrincham Market High Street, Conor Leyden

Dover Market Square, Dover District Council

Freiburg Healthy Suburbs, Lenny

7.1 OJECTIVES & ACTIONS

Deliver a new, modern market square with a memorable focal point that attracts locals and visitors and supports a flexible range of activities

Improve pedestrian connections and enhance key gateways into the site by reducing the severance caused by heavy infrastructure

Introduce ambitious to increase residential commercial offer support a successful

Reduce and rationalise car parking and servicing to make best possible use of space for people and activities in the town centre

Reduce barriers to movement and improve permeability through the retail core

ambitious mixed-use development residential density, improve the and create leisure space to successful day and night economy

Retain key views to, and improve the setting of valuable heritage assets including the Town Hall, Market Hall, St Michael’s and the Old Library

Expand the existing pedestrian core to build a walkable environment that connects across the site, to public transport and surrounding communities

Ensure a landscape-led design to approach of key routes and spaces to create a climateresilient green infrastructure network that makes connections beyond the site

Create distinctive character areas across the site to both compliment the conservation area but also add diversity and enhance legibility

REFERENCES

GMCA (2021), “Places for Everyone”. Online. Available at: https://www.greatermanchester-ca.gov. uk/what-we-do/planning-and-housing/places-for-everyone/

Hatch Regeneris (2020). Tameside Economic Baseline Report). Final Report. Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council. Available at: https://www.tameside.gov.uk/TamesideMBC/media/tbc/Tameside-Economic-Baseline-Final-Report-June-2020.pdf (Accessed: 22 February 2023)

HollissVincent (2018). Tameside Retail and Leisure Study (TRLS) 2018. Volume 1 – Main Report. Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council. Available at: https://www.tameside.gov.uk/TamesideMBC/media/Planning/Appendix-2-Final-TRLS-Volume-2-Compressed.pdf (Accessed: 22 February 2023)

Javelin Group (2013) GREATER MANCHESTER TOWN CENTRE PROJECT CONCLUDING REPORT. Online. Available at: https://www.greatermanchester-ca.gov.uk/media/1183/gm_town_centre_ review.doc

MHCLG (2019), “National Design Guide”. Online. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/ publications/national-design-guide

MHCLG (2021), “Build Back Better High Streets”. Online. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/build-back-better-high-streets

MHCLG (2021), “National Planning Policy Framework”. Online. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/ government/publications/national-planning-policy-framework--2 Nottingham City Centre Masterplan (2021) Online. Available at: https://www.archdaily. com/973427/heatherwick-studio-reveals-plans-for-the-redesign-of-nottingham-city-centre

Tameside MBC (2010), “Ashton-under-Lyne Town Centre Strategy Supplementary Planning Document”. Online. Available at: https://www.tameside.gov.uk/Planning/Ashton-Town-Centre-Strategy-Supplementary-Planning

Tameside MBC (2021) Tameside levelling up fund bid. Online. Available at: https://tameside.moderngov.co.uk/documents/s117538/ITEM%206%20-Appendix%20A%20-%20Application.pdf

Tameside MBC (2022), “Tameside Town Centres Framework February 2022”. Online. Available at: https://tameside.moderngov.co.uk/documents/s123225/ITEM%2011%20-%20Appendix%20 A%20-%20Tameside%20Town%20Centres%20Framework%20Consultation%20FINAL.pdf

Transport for Greater Manchester (2023) Tameside place profile

Transport for Greater Manchester (2021) Transport for Greater Manchester 5 Year Delivery Plan 2021-2026. Online. Available at: https://tfgm.com/our-five-year-transport-delivery-plan

Images:

Altrincham Market High Street, Conor Leyden (2018) Online. Available at: https://www.localgov.co.uk/ From-ghost-town-to-go-to-town/45320

Ashton-under-Lyne Tramway to Staybridge (No Date) Online. Available at: https://www.tramwayinfo. com/Tramframe.htm?https://www.tramwayinfo.com/trampostcards/Postc253.htm

Birkenhead 2014 Framework Masterplan, 2021. Online. Available at: https://www.wirral.gov.uk/business/ regeneration/birkenhead-2040-framework

Canal and River Trust. (n.d.). Portland Basin. Available at: https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/places-to-visit/ portland-basin (Accessed: 23 February 2023).

Dover Market Square, Dover gov. (No Date) Online. Available at: https://www.dover.gov.uk/Planning/Regeneration/Market-Square/Reinventing-Dovers-Market-Square-Dover.aspx

Friends of King George V Playing Fields. (2015). Community event. Available at: https://www.facebook. com/FOKGVPF/photos/pb.100068852418929.-2207520000./893190334105407/?type=3 (Accessed: 24 February 2023).

Glover, A. (2012). Ashton Market Square and Town Hall. [online] Flickr. Available at: https://www.flickr. com/photos/lexglover/8242015056/ [Accessed 25 Feb. 2023].

Office for National Statistics (2022). Population and household estimates, England and Wales - Office for National Statistics. Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates/bulletins/population (Accessed: 21 February 2023)

Priscilla Du Preez (2018) People Laughing, Online. Available at: https://unsplash.com/photos/nF8xhLMmg0

St Petersfield Development Prospectus (2021) Ashton Interchange. Online. Available at: https://www. tameside.gov.uk/TamesideMBC/media/housing/7997_SiteWide_Prospectus_v5_Reduced.pdf Stockton High Street, Kathleen Demoily) (No Date). Online. Available at: https://www.gazettelive.co.uk/ news/teesside-news/stockton-struggling-fill-empty-shops-9979788

Tameside MBC (2010), “Ashton-under-Lyne Town Centre Strategy Supplementary Planning Document”. Online. Available at: https://www.tameside.gov.uk/Planning/Ashton-Town-Centre-Strategy-Supplementary-Planning

Tameside MBC (2022), “Tameside Town Centres Framework February 2022”. Online. Available at: https:// tameside.moderngov.co.uk/documents/s123225/ITEM%2011%20-%20Appendix%20A%20-%20Tameside%20Town%20Centres%20Framework%20Consultation%20FINAL.pdf

The Hat Factory, Luton. Revolution Arts (no date) Online. Available at: https://www.revolutonarts.com/ matrix/venues/the-hat-factory

Visit North West. (n.d.). Ashton Leisure Park | Cinema, Bowling, Restaurants, Pubs. Available at: https:// www.visitnorthwest.com/sights/ashton-moss/ (Accessed 24 February 2023).

ASH TON

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