Blow as developer axes 148-home plan

DERKER dismay . . . Labour MP Debbie Abrahams (right) visits Derker residents Maureen Walsh and Joan Diggle with shadow secretary Mary Creagh MP (left)

‘Heartbreaking to see people left high and dry’ — MP
A HIGH-PROFILE politician has described the scrapping of the Housing Market Renewal scheme as heartbreaking — on the day it was revealed a plan to build nearly 150 homes in Derker has fallen through.

A visit by Labour Shadow Secretary for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Mary Creagh, coincided with the news that private developer Bellway had pulled the plug on its scheme for 148 new homes.

The company had planned to carry out work in the area with help from a £1.8 million lump sum from the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA).

The development would have taken place in the area bordered by Afghan Street, Acre Lane, Harcourt Street and Crabtree Road.

But, with the deadline for a final decision looming, the company shattered the hopes of redevelopment in the area at the final hour.

Councillor John McCann, cabinet member for regeneration and environment, said: “They pulled out at the last minute and it was so late that we had no chance of getting anyone else in.

“It was literally the week before.

“We have been able to carry a bit of money forward from the legacy of Housing Market Renewal, and aim to purchase the remaining houses, accommodate the residents and demolish the houses and grass it.

“The area is attracting undesirable behaviour and it is not good for the people still there.”

He said that the demolition would have to happen “sooner rather than later” to avoid losing the remnants of funding left over from the scheme.

Labour MP Mrs Creagh visited Derker residents Maureen Walsh and Joan Diggle with Oldham East and Saddlewoth MP Debbie Abrahams yesterday.

She said: “It’s heartbreaking to see these people left high and dry.

“They have been treated terribly shabby by the council, with poor communication and they are now in an impossible situation that needs to be resolved.

“People are living in this way and yet I spoke to a construction worker who couldn’t find a job.”

In response, Councillor McCann asssured local residents that the council is taking charge of the matter.

Mrs Abrahams said she was startled at the condition of Mrs Walsh and Mrs Diggle’s homes, with damp starting to creep on the walls due to the empty houses next-door.

She has now written to Housing Minister Grant Shapps and is waiting for a reply.

A spokesperson for Bellway Homes said: “We are very disappointed to have to withdraw from this development, however, we feel that at present the market in Oldham could not sustain a development of this nature.

“Not withstanding this we hope to be able to work with Oldham Council at some point in the future.”