Oldham is still a big draw

BUSTLING . . . town centre

Town centre chiefs slam doom and gloom merchants

OLDHAM town centre bosses have hit back at figures which suggest Oldham is struggling to lift itself out of the economic gloom.

New research has revealed a clear North-South divide over how areas will cope with tough times ahead — with Oldham sited as one of the places most likely to struggle.

But town centre chiefs have dismissed the doom and gloom, pointing out that vacancy rates within the £200m Spindles shopping centre are at their lowest for five years and the town centre itself is doing well.

Research commissioned by the BBC and carried out by Experian ranked each local authority in order based on its ability to withstand and respond to economic shocks such as public sector job losses and business insolvencies.

It ranked Oldham at 300 out of 324, the second lowest ranking across the region just ahead of Tameside at 307.

But Mike Flanagan, manager of the ING-owned shopping centre said: “There will always be turnover in terms of units becoming vacant and others being let, that is a fact of life.

“But, the facts are, historically, we have the lowest vacancy rates for five years and we are trading as well if not better when compared with other town centres, in terms of units let and the performance of our tenants.”

Looking at the wider Oldham town centre, a success barometer based on vacant square footage is distorted by the empty B&Q warehouse at Mumps and the empty former Sainsbury’s store in Bloom Street.

The B&Q site has been acquired as part of the Metrolink project and Sainsbury’s continue to pay the lease on the old store rather than allow a competitor to take occupancy.

The former Woolworths store in High Street, which has been taken over by Iceland and is currently being renovated, will also accommodate two tenants — currently in Spindles — but the letting agents are confident of finding replacements for Poundland and Sports Direct.

Oldham Council leader Howard Sykes said: “Many areas are feeling the impact of the economic downturn, however, this report shows that in Oldham, vacancy rates — at 15.2 per cent — are much lower than Stockport (22.3 per cent), Rochdale (19.5 per cent) or Bolton (18.2 per cent).

“There have also been significant changes since this report was carried out as the former Woolworths building has now been let and Iceland, Poundland and Sports Direct are aiming to be in and trading in time for Christmas.”