Masterplan
Will Hayter
The Event:
Key Findings from the event
Breaking down the key ideas highlighted to us in the event
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The event at Stretford Public Hall gave us an understanding of the area and how, through community led architectural intervention, a more cohesive space can be achieved.
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A lack of opportunity for young people
How the lack of social and educational activities for young people within Stretford has led to an increased generational gap within the town. Young people have no reason to stay here; be it for the lack of after-school activities, or lack of options for places to socialise on the weekends. This, coupled with rising house prices across the borough, has isolated the younger generation, leaving them with no option but to leave Stretford and move elsewhere.
A lack of Night time activities
One main concern voiced by the people of Stretford was the lack of options the area has for people to socialise at night; as a result, people head to the nearby Chorlton or Sale to meet up and go to nightly classes. This has left Stretford behind and, coupled with the closing of the Mall at 5pm, has made the place feel like a “ghost town” in the evenings.
A need for more green space and less traffic
The most popular place for people of all ages to socialise within Stretford was Victoria Park. This shows the importance a green space can have, and how people use it as a space to meet and greet. However, around the Public Hall, there is a distinct lack of green space. The Sites proximity to the 6 lane Chester road intersection has led to the constant presence of noise pollution, reducing the want for people to stay and socialise around Stretford Public Hall.
A need for more commercial growth
The Mall received the most controversy during our event; not least because of the high rent prices. Because of this, there is a lack of independent shops within the area, with people viewing the mall as having “taken away Stretfords identity”. Edge Lane also has a large number of closed and dilapidated shops. All of this commercial inactivity paints the picture of a town in decline, something which is completely untrue and needs to be addressed.
Areas for improvement:
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Idea : Stretford Arts Factory
An Arts factory which caters primarily to a focus on youth outreach, and creates a social space for the people of Stretford to convene in.
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A new type of opportunity for young people
Through maintaining a focus on reaching out to the youth of Stretford, my project hopes to provide a creative platform for those feeling disenfranchised within the area. By examining alternative forms of education, the Arts factory seeks to train the younger generation with the ability for more hands-on activities, such as woodwork and ceramics. This nurturing of skills will hopefully be able to transform the lives of the people within the area and inspire a future generation to be the change they wish to see in Stretford. A factory with a focus on inspiring and educating.
Nightly Classes as social functions
The Arts factory seeks to reinstall a more social night life within Stretford, one which can educate and also inspire all generations of Stretford to create. Through night classes such as pottery workshops, life drawing or design classes, the scheme will cater to every taste and every skill level and can be run by the youth team within the workshop or people from the wider community within Stretford.
A new park with an improved road system
The demolition of the back of the Essoldo creates a new, massive open space which people can gather in. This lends itself to the creation of a park which can act as a social hub within Stretford, improving links to the public hall and the wider community. This park will act as an incentive for greater change in the wider area, namely how Chester road could become more pedestrian friendly, which would encourage more people to stop and frequent the park and the Public Hall.
The Redevelopment of Edge Lane
Through capitalising on the low rent prices and dilapidated shop fronts of Edge Lane, independent stores could be created which sell the designs and ideas produced in the Arts factory. This would help to encourage a sense of local commercial growth within the area and could perhaps extend onto making the Mall a space for independent shops too, an idea expressed within the event. The row of shops would be run by the young members of the workshop, teaching them valuable skills of business and finance whilst also ensuring that the scheme has enough financial upkeep to become self-sustaining.
Stretford Arts Factory
