Trafford is home to world-class sporting venues, excellent schools and education opportunities, stunning parks and green spaces, attracting thousands of people to the area.

The borough neighbours Manchester City, Salford, and Cheshire in the south, with each of Trafford’s four districts, Altrincham, Sale, Stretford, and Urmston, offering unique characteristics underpinned by close-knit communities.

It is also home to Trafford Park, the largest industrial site in Europe and considered a regional engine for growth.  The site is in a prime location with motorway and public transport links nearby. With its proximity to Manchester Airport and the Manchester Ship Canal, Trafford Park offers the borough a central distribution centre for large scale industry and manufacturing.

Trafford’s leading Labour politicians and council executives have significant growth plans for the borough, they include bringing forward new housing, alongside a revolutionary green agenda. Clearly, Trafford’s reputation as an excellent place to live, work, and relax, is undoubtedly increasing.

Over the next decade, millions of pounds will be invested into the borough, with plans to deliver large scale housing developments, multi-million-pound leisure and sport facility upgrades, cleaner, greener, and alternative ways of travel, and major town centre regeneration projects.

The council’s recently published Corporate Plan, maps out how the organisation will focus its support for children, health, the economy, climate change, culture and heritage.

Cllr Liz Patel, Labour’s Executive Member for Economy and Regeneration, explains what all this means for the borough.

The vision will place town centre regeneration at the heart of economic growth.

Here are some of the transformational public realm regeneration projects that will help the borough build on its success with plans to create a greener, fairer, and more prosperous future for everyone.

Altrincham Town Centre

As the borough’s largest town, Altrincham’s hugely popular market transformation became the formula to invest further in the area. The town boasts a vibrant mix of specialist independent businesses, coffee shops, restaurants, as well as high street names. It is well connected with a prominent commercial scene, high-level daytime, and evening footfall – and a thriving housing market that has enticed thousands to the borough.

Plans for the town centre include revitalising the Stamford Quarter into a gateway to Altrincham, providing a combination of new homes, workspace, retail and leisure opportunities with a vision it will encourage more people to visit, shop and stay in the area.

There have also been improvements to George Street, Market and Regent Streets, Stamford New Road and Stamford Way. These will extend the attractive, high quality, family friendly environment and form part of the wider town centre public realm improvement works, such as new footpaths, crossing points, paving, seating, cycle lanes, tree planting, flowerbeds, and new disabled parking bays.

Sale Town Centre

Sale provides an enticing array of residential areas that together form one of the most highly regarded places to live in the UK. It has great schools, local transport links and convenient motorway and airport access.

The redevelopment of Stanley Square by Altered Space has revitalised and transformed the town centre, creating an enhanced environment for retailers and shoppers and an improved night-time economy all contributing to making Sale a great place to work, socialise and enjoy.

This comes as the role of the borough’s town centres are going through significant change and development including the rise in demand for more central living opportunities. Its anticipated that work to deliver 84 new homes on the former Sale Magistrates Court site, that will include 21 affordable town centre homes will begin in 2025.

Spades are already in the ground to regenerate several properties with plans to bring them back into use as affordable homes. The vacant properties at Lindow Court, are undergoing a full refurbishment. The scheme will deliver nine social rented one and two-bedroom apartments, with 50 per cent going to working people living in Sale Moor.  The existing seven flats will be remodelled to convert them into three two-bedroom and six one-bedroom apartments.

Stretford Town Centre

The transformation of Stretford town centre is progressing at pace as work to demolish the vacant probation centre on Lacy Street is set to make way for new family homes. The properties, including affordable homes, are part of the overall masterplan for Stretford town centre and will stretch to the adjoining car park and former post office site.

Extra meeting areas are also planned in addition to a green biodiversity corridor and ‘Central Park’ at the heart of the town centre through to an improved Bridgewater Canal waterside experience. Work to transform Stretford Mall is also continuing.  Public realm works to make the Kingsway and Barton Road junction safer and greener are now up and running.

The development will also provide space for retailers, restaurants, and bars with the view of boosting the evening economy. The area will spill into a new south-facing community space and feature a covered shopping centre for local independent businesses.

Urmston Town Centre

To ensure Urmston thrives over the coming years, planners and executives are working to develop a masterplan for the town centre. The blueprint will set a framework to improve the vitality and sustainability of the area, strengthen its performance as one of the borough’s four town centres, improve its visual and environmental appearance and improve accessibility and active travel. The vision is to identify several key sites for potential development, improvement, and regeneration in the town centre.

With great schools, a thriving community, transport links to the M60 and into the city centre, Urmston is already a desirable place to live.  The overarching plan will future proof the town as a successful, sustainable, and dynamic place over the next 15 years.

The regeneration of the borough’s town centres will be the key to unlock economic growth as they revolutionise how residents, workers and visitors adapt to new ways to live, work, shop and socialise. Trafford leaders plan to deliver employment opportunities, their focus is on business, logistic, engineering, the arts, creative, digital and media industries while being a frontrunner in energy innovation. This comes with a pledge to support children and young people, improving health outcomes, provide sustainable homes, delivering a greener, cleaner future with access to sport and culture for all.