Festive events were a big hit

FESTIVE events in the town centre proved a Christmas cracker, with figures showing that scores of first-time visitors headed to Oldham to take advantage of a packed seasonal events calendar.

Highlighting statistics showing that 17 per cent of individuals at the reindeer parade were visiting Oldham for the first time, town centre manager Mark Lester said: “This is phenomenal.”

Almost half of the people who attended the reindeer parade were also infrequent visitors to Oldham and a number of the visitors to other festive events came from as far afield as Bolton, Halifax, Manchester, Stockport and Lancaster.

Mr Lester added: “If you look at the Christmas lights switch-on, that is 700-800 people from out-of-town visiting Oldham for the first time on a cold Sunday night to watch our switch-on.”

Crowds were also pleasantly surprised with what they found, with 80 per cent of respondents to the council customer surveys saying that the Winter Wonderland event was better than they expected. Some 74 per cent said the same about the reindeer parade.

“Many people who don’t live in Oldham have low expectations of the town centre and they are always pleasantly surprised when they come,” said Mr Lester. “This shows the huge impact our Christmas events programme has on Oldham.

“These figures also underline the effectiveness of our advertising, with huge numbers saying they visited as a direct result of seeing an advert.”




‘Negative’ Oldhamers jibe



OLDHAMERS are genetically programmed to be negative — that’s the startling verdict of one local councillor who made the borough his home more than four decades ago.



Councillor Dave Hibbert said: “I chose Chadderton as my home and l’ve lived there for 45 years, but the one thing I have found frustrating is that Oldhamers seem to be genetically programmed to be negative about their borough. I have met a number of people who have never even left Oldham, I don’t mean permanently, I mean people who never head out of Oldham for shopping or anything.

“I know people who have never even been to Manchester, so they have nothing to compare Oldham with.

“Everyone raves about Bury. I went to the market there and, while it was bustling and busy, it wasn’t very nice. Their shopping precinct isn’t as good as ours.

“The most vociferous critics of Oldham are the ones who seldom stray out of the town centre, so they have never been and compared it with anywhere else.

“I wish people would be more positive about Oldham than they are.

“I know people who live in other areas who think Oldham is great.”




Tram cash is a huge challenge



BRINGING trams down Union Street will be an uphill struggle now that Oldhamers have rejected the congestion charge which would have helped to pay for it.



Phil Joblin, service director for regeneration, said ordinary Government revenue schemes for public transport would continue — but Oldham will have to fight for the cash in a battle with the treasury.

He added: “The TIF bid was not only about the congestion charge and Metrolink.

“It was about a sea change in the scale of resources available for the improvement of public transport links.

“Improved bus services, school bus services and pedestrian facilities are still on the agenda, but will take longer to deliver.

“But the possibility of trams running through the town centre will require us to generate new revenue and satisfy treasury criteria.

“That is a huge challenge.”