In 2017 Planit started work, alongside a team at Oldham Council, The University of Salford and local communities, to produce a masterplan to transform 160 acres of former industrial land in the heart of Oldham, Greater Manchester, into a flourishing space.

The 65-hectare site, where industrial mills, mines and railway lines once stood, is currently an area of underutilised rough ground, greenspace and dense woodland located between Glodwick and Fitton Hill communities. The Northern Roots’ vision is to deliver a productive eco-park that will benefit and inspire the residents and communities of Oldham, whilst also becoming an asset for Greater Manchester and a site of national importance.  Once complete, it will feature an urban farm, allotment, farm shop, visitor centre, café, learning centre and meeting spaces. Recreational activities such as park runs, mountain-biking and graded walking routes will further enrich the attraction. 

Currently, the space is mostly under-used by the local community, aside from cross bike users, and some perceive it as unsafe. Views of the park are limited due to its steep topography, and a wide variety of dense tree species and plantations from the north to the south. Much of the planting is neglected and unmanaged, creating thick pockets and strips along the park’s pathways and cycleways.

The Roots are Spreading

The site’s transformation is already underway. The first phase of the Northern Roots urban farm, located at the entrance to the site, is up and running and adopting pioneering methods, new technologies and approaches for food production and food enterprise. The farm’s produce, including leeks, aubergines, carrots and potatoes, is sold onsite on Thursdays each week and queues for its first crop of veggies, marketed only through the Northern Roots social channels, were an exciting indicator of the park’s growing fanbase.  The addition of new flowers and trees have been planted to encourage pollinators and foster extensive biodiversity across the site.

In addition to its food production, Northern Roots will deliver a raft of great opportunities for local businesses through its work spaces, jobs in its visitor Centre, café and shop, and act as an educational hub for local school children through its Learning Centre and urban farm.

Georgina Baines, Landscape Architect Director at Planit comments:

“Planit’s Northern Roots masterplan was designed to retain and improve the significant natural resources of the existing site. With careful management, the aim is to significantly increase the biodiversity of this almost forgotten space in Oldham, while enhancing the sustainable use of the land.

We worked alongside the Northern Roots team to enable innovative horticultural and agricultural practices that support the natural environment and demonstrate that high-volume production can be achieved in urban areas through organic and low-impact methods.  When complete, we hope the eco-park that Northern Roots will become a blueprint for a regenerative approach to land recovery and encourage more councils to follow Oldham Borough Council and the Northern Roots Trust’s lead to develop more urban farms across the UK.”

What’s Next?

This eco-park is only just warming up and there is much more to come. This first phase of delivery of the Northern Roots masterplan represents a significant milestone in the creation of the wider vision and will act as a catalyst for future phases.

The vision proposals were approved at planning as part of a hybrid application. The application covers the wider vision for the northern third of the Northern Roots site in outline, along with detailed applications for: the Visitor Centre, Events Buildings, Forestry Skills Centre, Learning Centre, Solar Array and associated landscaping, carpark and access roads.

Planit have been working closely with Oldham Council and Willmott Dixon to take the design for the Visitor Centre and Forestry Skills Centre to the next stage, with the intention of being on site later this year. The proposals have included working with the exiting woodland and design of extensive new planting and landscape – to include the addition of woodland paths, meadow, a play area and outdoor amphitheatre.

We’ve also been working alongside the Northern Roots team to design the second location for growing within the masterplan. Urban Farm 2 will cover a 4 acre plot adjacent to the Visitor’s Centre and enable the production of fruit, vegetables, herbs and flowers on a larger scale. Once built, it will feed supplies for the proposed shop and café in the Visitor Centre and widen opportunities for community engagement, training and outreach.

If the farm produce queues are anything to go by, news of this community and climate positive focused project has spread quickly, and we can’t wait to get going on the next phase with the Northern Root’s team.

Masterplan and vision team:

Landowner and Client, Oldham Council and Northern Roots Trust have worked with Planit as part of a wider team including; Sanderson Associates (Highways Engineers), JDDK Architects (Architects and Masterplanner), EPG (Civils), TEP (Ecologist and Arboriculturist), Arup (Planning Consultant), Salford University (Strategic Partner including Consultation, Ground Testing, Archaeology and Business Modelling)

Visitor Centre and Forestry Skills Centre delivery Team:

Oldham Council (Landowner) and Northern Roots Trust (Future Occupier) have worked with Planit as part of a wider team including; Wilmott Dixon Construction (Contractor, Client, Project Manager) Fairhurst and Sanderson Associates (Structure / Civils/Highways), JM Architects (Architects), Tace (M&E) and TEP (Ecologist and Arboriculturist), Plan Red (Planning Consultant), Turner and Townsend project management/ Client representative and EWA client technical advisor, KOK (CDM) .