Consultation opens on bid to provide homes and sports facilities on former playing fields

Public consultation has been launched for a scheme that will turn former playing fields into sporting facilities and housing.

Greater Manchester Youth Federation (GMYF) has unveiled plans for a community-led transformation of the former Mellands Playing Fields in Gorton. The plans will bring the site back into active use and secure the future of youth and sports provision at the heart of the Mellands site for years to come.

Working with some of the most disadvantaged communities in Greater Manchester, GMYF is a charitable organisation that has been providing vital youth services to young people in Greater Manchester for more than 110 years.

Over recent years, GMYF has been seeking to find a sustainable future for its Mellands Playing Fields site, located between Mount Road and Wembley Road in Gorton. Historically an important community asset, the site has not been in full active use for several years.

Working with Centrepoint and Kellen Homes, GMYF has now found a way to deliver a community-led future for the site which will bring it back into active use and provide a range of benefits for people in the local area.

The proposals for the site include:

• Two new grass football pitches and changing facilities for year-round use by GMYF and local clubs, including West Gorton Junior FC
• New youth, sports and community hub buildings, providing a new home for GMYF’s programme of youth-focused activities as well as spaces for local community groups to meet.
• 36 independent living apartments for young adults leaving the care system, to be operated by Centrepoint
• 246 new homes delivered by Kellen Homes, which will contribute to the long standing need for high quality, sustainable new homes in Gorton. There will be a mix of tenures including affordable housing

Karen Wilson, GMYF chief executive, said: “The new building will provide a home for our extensive programme of youth-focused activities, which will run in the afternoons and evenings after school and provide safe spaces for young people. We wanted to provide housing for the young people of our city and so we have chosen to work with Centrepoint to deliver that type of housing. Housing is a challenge facing our city and even more so for its young people.

“By working in partnership with Centrepoint and Kellen Homes, we can put our youth, sports and community provision on a financially sustainable footing and ensure we have a positive, active presence in Gorton for generations to come.”

Youth homelessness charity, Centrepoint, will build and operate a purpose-designed independent living accommodation building which will provide 36 studio apartments for young people aged 18-25. Sally Orlopp, director of people, property and independent living at Centrepoint, said: “By working in partnership with GMYF in Gorton, we are able to help meet the housing needs of young people in Manchester by giving them a home which can act as a stepping stone into longer term independent housing.”

Kellen Homes is proposing a mix of properties for sale and for rent, as well as affordable homes to be delivered in partnership with a local registered provider.

Mark Calvert, land director of Kellen Homes, said: “The mix of new homes we’re proposing will be in a mix of sizes and tenure types to suit first-time buyers, growing families and downsizers.”

The consultation will be open until Tuesday, June 6, and will enable members of the local community to see the proposals and provide feedback on the plans.

This consultation includes two drop-in sessions: Monday, May 22, (Gorton Education Village, 50 Wembley Rd, Manchester, M18 7DT) 4pm to 6.30pm, and Tuesday, May 23, (Gorton Library, 27 Garratt Way, Manchester, M18 8HE) 11.30am to 2.30pm.

Those who cannot attend in person will be able to review and comment on the proposals via the consultation website: www.mellands-consultation.co.uk