Greater Manchester & Cheshire

Greater Manchester & Cheshire

Getting the basics right and listening to you, your priorities and aspirations remain the foundation for everything we do. Our Corporate Plan, The Onward Difference, is all about enabling you to be your best, in a home you love and place you are proud of. 

Explore updates about the changes we’ve made, as well as examples of how we are making The Onward Difference in your local area. 

Rochdale

Enabling people to be their best 

We hosted a community get together Woods Court, our older person’s scheme in Middleton, to consult with customers about future events.  

Through the Onward Community Fund, we have gone beyond housing by granting over £43.9k to 23 local projects across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East since March this year. For further details about how you could get a grant for up to £2,500 and to apply, please email socialinvestment@onward.co.uk. 

Providing homes our customers love   

We are working with Manchester City Council on their Housing First initiative which aims to provide homes for those in need. 

Since April this year, we have made improvements to our existing homes across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East, including 218 new kitchens, 212 new bathrooms, 70 new roofs, 321 new doors, 42 new boilers and the installation of new windows in 210 homes. 

Creating places people are proud of 

In partnership with the local council, we are addressing environmental concerns across Rochdale, such as fly tipping and waste management.  

Cheshire East

Enabling people to be their best 

Through the Onward Community Fund, we have gone beyond housing by granting over £43.9k to 23 local projects across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East since March this year. For further details about how you could get a grant for up to £2,500 and to apply, please email socialinvestment@onward.co.uk. 

Providing homes our customers love   

Since April this year, we have made improvements to our existing homes across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East, including 218 new kitchens, 212 new bathrooms, 70 new roofs, 321 new doors, 42 new boilers and the installation of new windows in 210 homes. 

Creating places people are proud of 

In partnership with the local council, we have hosted skip days and alongside customers, helped to clear fly tipping and clean up the area.  

Bolton

Enabling people to be their best 

Our 1st Call Team have teamed up with the Athena Partnership to deliver The Working Well: Support to Succeed project which is helping local people make positive changes in their lives through one-to-one coaching. 

Through the Onward Community Fund, we have gone beyond housing by granting over £43.9k to 23 local projects across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East since March this year. For further details about how you could get a grant for up to £2,500 and to apply, please email socialinvestment@onward.co.uk. 

Through the Fund, we have recently supported four community projects: 

  • Healthier Together, a health and wellbeing event delivered by MHIST saw local residents take part in free iterative sessions, from a sound bath and QI Gong to banner making. 
  • Handforth Community Fun Day saw 100 residents come together to enjoy arts and crafts, football and children’s entertainment. 
  • Climate Change Art, delivered by the Harmony Youth Project delivered art sessions focused on the effects of climate change, with the goal of raising awareness about environmental issues and their impact on young people. 
  • The Kidz2Cooks project in Farnworth saw 30 enthusiastic pupils from St James CE Primary School learn how to prepare dishes using common home ingredients, as well as the importance of home food preparation and healthy eating from a young age. 

We’ve also supported a range of community projects including: 

  • Halliwell Environmental Ramblers’ nature-based activities 
  • Bolton Wanderers’ weekly football sessions  
  • Elite Boxing’s weekly classes 
  • Movement to Music, a weekly line dancing class for over 50’s  
  • St Andrews’ Breakfast Club 

Providing homes our customers love   

In Little Lever, Bolton, we are building 110 new homes on the former site of Creams Mills in partnership with Watson Homes. Affordable Rent homes will be available through Homes for Bolton alongside a mixture of Rent to Buy and Shared Ownership through Onward Living to help local people get onto the property ladder. A show home is expected to open to the public in January 2025.  

Since April this year, we have made improvements to our existing homes across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East, including 218 new kitchens, 212 new bathrooms, 70 new roofs, 321 new doors, 42 new boilers and the installation of new windows in 210 homes. 

Creating places people are proud of 

As part of our development in Little Leaver, Bolton, a section of the Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal will be restored and over 4,000 new trees will be planted to create woodland areas with walking trails for the local community to enjoy together.   

Customers from The Pewfist neighbourhood in Bolton alongside colleagues from Social Investment and Onward Environmental recently came together with City of Trees at a planting day, which saw native tree species planted to create a more attractive, greener environment for the community to enjoy. 

Customers from The Pewfist neighbourhood in Bolton alongside colleagues from Social Investment and Onward Environmental recently came together with City of Trees at a planting day, which saw native tree species planted to create a more attractive, greener environment for the community to enjoy. 

Bury

Enabling people to be their best 

Our development partner, John Southworth, has created has gone beyond house building to support seven community projects in the area. 

Through the Onward Community Fund, we have gone beyond housing by granting over £43.9k to 23 local projects across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East since March this year. For further details about how you could get a grant for up to £2,500 and to apply, please email socialinvestment@onward.co.uk. 

Thanks to a grant from the Fund, Bury Council’s Adult Learning service are delivering work and skills engagement sessions with adults, connecting local people with employment partners and providing a space for training providers to raise awareness of learning opportunities in the area. 

Our partnership work with St Andrews Community Hub in Whitefield has continued, and we’ve worked with Social Prescribing and Live Well Teams alongside Calico to support residents with housing, employment and health needs.  

We’ve also launched a Digital Skills Class in partnership with Bury Adult Learning Services and Trust House Food Pantry. Participants from the local area are learning about how to get online safely and use the My Onward Portal, and will also get a free tablet once the course has finished. 

Providing homes our customers love   

On the former site of Wheatfields Day Centre in Bury, our development of 30 new homes is nearly complete. Through Onward Living’s Shared Ownership scheme 14 of the new homes will be helping people onto the property ladder, with 16 homes available via Affordable Rent through Bury Home Options. Customers will be moving into their new homes from early December.  

Since April this year, we have made improvements to our existing homes across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East, including 218 new kitchens, 212 new bathrooms, 70 new roofs, 321 new doors, 42 new boilers and the installation of new windows in 210 homes. 

Creating places people are proud of 

When customers at Hilton Lodge told us about antisocial behaviour taking place outside of their scheme, we arranged a visit with our Safer Neighbourhoods Team to understand what we could do to address the issue. We are now working with a contractor to install additional lighting and CCTV at the scheme.  

In partnership with the local council, we hosted a skip day in our Rivers neighbourhood and alongside customers, helped to clear fly tipping and clean up the area. We have also continued to support the Eden Gardens Allotment in the neighbourhood.  

As part of our development in Whitefield, we’ve recently worked in partnership with our community in Rivers alongside contractors John Southworth and Connollys on a clean-up day. We also worked with the area’s councillors, a local litter picking group and employees and students from St Michaels and Ribble Drive Primary Schools to clean the neighbourhood. 

Connollys worked with volunteers from our Legal, Neighbourhoods and Safer Neighbourhoods teams to develop an outside space at St Michaels Primary School for early years students. We have also supported the school with a grant from the Onward Community Fund and will be working with them to transform another outside space into a growing and reading area for students.  

We also supported an open day at Eden Garden Allotments in Rivers, bringing local services, community groups, the Mayor and Councillors to showcase their work. 

High Peak

Enabling people to be their best 

Through the Onward Community Fund, we have gone beyond housing by granting over £43.9k to 23 local projects across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East since March this year. For further details about how you could get a grant for up to £2,500 and to apply, please email socialinvestment@onward.co.uk. 

Providing homes our customers love   

Since April this year, we have made improvements to our existing homes across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East, including 218 new kitchens, 212 new bathrooms, 70 new roofs, 321 new doors, 42 new boilers and the installation of new windows in 210 homes. 

Manchester

Enabling people to be their best 

Through the Onward Community Fund, we have gone beyond housing by granting over £43.9k to 23 local projects across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East since March this year. For further details about how you could get a grant for up to £2,500 and to apply, please email socialinvestment@onward.co.uk. 

Providing homes our customers love  

We are working with Manchester City Council on their Rightsizing, Resettlement and Housing First initiatives, which aim to provide homes for those in need.  

Since April this year, we have made improvements to our existing homes across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East, including 218 new kitchens, 212 new bathrooms, 70 new roofs, 321 new doors, 42 new boilers and the installation of new windows in 210 homes.  

Creating places people are proud of 

Following a neighbourhood inspection in Handforth with local Councillors and Police, we removed fly tipping, addressed vehicles parked on pavements and arranged for ivy to be removed from homes.  

When customers at Steven Court told us about issues with waste management, we worked with them to design a new bin store and raised awareness of how to keep their scheme clean. 

Oldham

Enabling people to be their best 

Through the Onward Community Fund, we have gone beyond housing by granting over £43.9k to 23 local projects across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East since March this year. For further details about how you could get a grant for up to £2,500 and to apply, please email socialinvestment@onward.co.uk. 

We have supported a number of local projects in Oldham through the Fund that engaged with young people over the Summer holidays, including activities at Poppy Road and Oasis Secondary School. 

The Fund is also supporting the delivery of sports sessions in the area, with ABC Boxing’s free sessions every Tuesday at Vestacre Stadium and Coldhurst Community Group’s sessions every Sunday at Kick Sonic Sports Complex. 

As part of our retrofit project in Oldham North, in partnership with our contractors we are supporting employment and training for local residents, providing work experience placements for students and gifting five laptops to customers as part of Onward Digital Connect. 

Providing homes our customers love   

Since April this year, we have made improvements to our existing homes in Oldham through an energy efficiency project to make 31 homes warmer, quieter and more affordable. A total of 47 homes will benefit from the project. 

During this time, we have also installed 218 new kitchens, 212 new bathrooms, 70 new roofs, 321 new doors, 42 new boilers and the installation of new windows in 210 homes across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East. 

Creating places people are proud of 

With the help of residents, our suppliers and partners, we refurbished The Park Community Hub, a thriving, multi-purpose space that is enabling the community in Hollinwood, Oldham to host a range of activities alongside services delivered by local partners. 

Alongside our retrofit project in Oldham North we have cleared fly tipping, swept streets and cleared debris.  

In Wetwood, our customers told us they needed a safe environment to take their young children who enjoy being outdoors. We consulted local people to identify a suitable location for a new playground, and together with customers, colleagues and contractor Playdale, we transformed an unused space on Westwood Drive into Gresham Green Play Area, with an agility style playground. A local customer said: “I am really pleased that Onward Homes took our suggestion onboard to develop the play area. My young children can now play safely on the playground.”  

We are also working with Oldham Council to renew Limeside Park and reduce antisocial behaviour in the area. 

Salford

Enabling people to be their best 

We’ve launched a bi-weekly drop in at The Naz Community Centre in Higher Broughton, with colleagues from Neighbourhoods, Money Advice and Social Investment offer support for residents in the area. 

Through the Onward Community Fund, we have gone beyond housing by granting over £43.9k to 23 local projects across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East since March this year. For further details about how you could get a grant for up to £2,500 and to apply, please email socialinvestment@onward.co.uk. 

Thanks to a grant from the Fund, Salford Survivors have delivered family cooking classes, homework clubs, cinema nights, seasonal family events, men’s mental health clubs, as well as wellbeing and loneliness clubs.  

We have also supported a new Family Hub at St Clements Church in Salford, with two weekly sessions for local young people hosted by Salford Survivors. 

We have continued to support the Salford Orchard, who delivered an events programme over the Summer holidays, from tool making, ceramics, planting, growing sessions and a forest school. 

Yaran NW has also been supported by the Fund, with a grant that will enable the delivery of cultural art therapy sessions designed to help mental health and wellness at The Broughton Hub. 

Providing homes our customers love   

Following feedback from our customers at Camp Street, we have improved CCTV and renewed the communal doors to provide better security for those living at the scheme. 

Since April this year, we have made improvements to our existing homes across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East, including 218 new kitchens, 212 new bathrooms, 70 new roofs, 321 new doors, 42 new boilers and the installation of new windows in 210 homes. 

Creating places people are proud of 

Take Action Together have been running sessions for children at Salford Orchard, including bug clubs, growing classes and garden parties. We are also working with the organisation and local community to help transform the alleyways and green spaces in the area. 

In partnership with the local council, we are also working to improve Lower Broughton. 

Stockport

Enabling people to be their best 

Through the Onward Community Fund, we have gone beyond housing by granting over £43.9k to 23 local projects across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East since March this year. For further details about how you could get a grant for up to £2,500 and to apply, please email socialinvestment@onward.co.uk. 

Providing homes our customers love 

Since April this year, we have made improvements to our existing homes across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East, including 218 new kitchens, 212 new bathrooms, 70 new roofs, 321 new doors, 42 new boilers and the installation of new windows in 210 homes. 

Creating places people are proud of 

Customers at Chaucer Mews also told us that they were not satisfied with the standard of communal repairs and grounds maintenance services. At the beginning of this year, we brought our repairs and environmental services inhouse, with these moving from contractors over to Onward Repairs and Onward Environmental. Customers here have told us that they are pleased with the services and have seen improvements now that they are delivered inhouse. 

Tameside

Enabling people to be their best 

Our customer Simon is an active member of the community in Hattersley and is involved in projects that support mental health and green spaces. Through the Onward Employment and Training Fund, our Social Investment Team has supported Simon with online training to improve his skills and further help community groups in the area. 

Through the Onward Community Fund, we have gone beyond housing by granting over £43.9k to 23 local projects across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East since March this year. For further details about how you could get a grant for up to £2,500 and to apply, please email socialinvestment@onward.co.uk. 

We supported the Forest School in Hattersley, an accessible nature-based learning environment for families, with participants going on to gain work experience opportunities and accredited training. 

To help local people in Hattersley access affordable food, we have also supported Bread and Butter who supply nutritious food through the FareShare scheme. Bounceback Food, a local community kitchen, has also joined the initiative to provide a series of cooking workshops and demonstrations on how to make the most out of the food they receive. 

Hundreds of local people from Hattersley joined our 1st Call Team, Tameside Council and Standguide at a recent job fair to explore employment opportunities at the new Hawthorns School which opened in September. 

To showcase the achievements, dedication and community spirit shown by volunteers across Hattersley we recently hosted a celebration event. As part of the event, we consulted attendees on which local projects would receive grants from the Onward Community Fund, with Friends of Polperro Walk, Lads Against Depression and Suicide, and Knit & Natter receiving funding for their initiatives.  

We’ve also supported events at the Hattersley Hub, including an anniversary celebration for All Seasons Art Group who recently welcomed their 20th year, and Makers Markets where local people sell handmade products and gifts. 

Providing homes our customers love   

Our latest phase of development in Hattersley in partnership with Rowlinson Construction will see a total of 161 new affordable homes delivered across three neighbouring sites. 

Birch Lea Park in Hattersley is expected to complete in the Spring and will provide 91 new apartments for older people. We also recently handed over the keys to 15 homes for shared ownership at our nearby development, The Alders.  

Not far away in Hattersley, our contractor Equans has recently handed over 27 new homes at Hare Hill Road, a development of two- and three-bedroom houses for affordable rent. 

At Pexhill Court, we have renewed footpaths surrounding the scheme to make them safer for customers and visitors.   

Since April this year, we have made improvements to our existing homes across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East, including 218 new kitchens, 212 new bathrooms, 70 new roofs, 321 new doors, 42 new boilers and the installation of new windows in 210 homes. 

Creating places people are proud of 

We are supporting a Go Green Scheme in Hattersley and alongside our contractors Groundwork, helped local community groups gain gardening skills at free sessions.  

So far, we have helped the community plant willow trees and create a woven fence hedge at Polperro Walk, as well as hosting a session on composting at Hattersley Projects Community Garden. 

We have supported local volunteers and the Hattersley Environmental Action Team, who worked together to clear space for a new Green Hub as part of the scheme. 

Trafford

Enabling people to be their best 

Through the Onward Community Fund, we have gone beyond housing by granting over £43.9k to 23 local projects across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East since March this year. For further details about how you could get a grant for up to £2,500 and to apply, please email socialinvestment@onward.co.uk. 

Providing homes our customers love  

In partnership with the local council, we have helped care leavers access affordable housing.  

At Hatro Court, we have renewed footpaths surrounding the scheme to make them safer for customers and visitors.   

Since April this year, we have made improvements to our existing homes across Greater Manchester and Cheshire East, including 218 new kitchens, 212 new bathrooms, 70 new roofs, 321 new doors, 42 new boilers and the installation of new windows in 210 homes.  

Creating places people are proud of 

Working closely with the local council, we have improved waste management across several schemes in the area. 

 

Get involved

We want to make sure that your voice is at the heart of everything we do and our Customer Engagement Community helps us do just that. We already have over 3,400 customers from across the North West who help make our homes and neighbourhoods better places to live. You can join them and have the opportunity to:  

  • Shape and improve services  
  • Take part in activities to help improve your neighbourhood and local area 
  • Share concerns, views and ideas 
  • Help to shape policies and strategies 
  • Gain useful experiences, develop new skills and increase your confidence  

Want to get involved? Please email customerengagement@onward.co.uk or sign up via our online form. 

 

Neighbourhood plans

Take a look at the old neighbourhood plans for your area.

The latest progress report on delivering our neighbourhood plans in Greater Manchester & Cheshire:

December 2022

May 2022

January 2022

October 2021

june 2021

OCTOBER 2020

See the original plans for your neighbourhood so you can measure them against our progress. The plans set out what we aim to achieve and improve, and were produced using customer feedback gathered through our STAR survey.

BOLTON NORTH

BOLTON SOUTH

BRUNSWICK

BURY AND RAMSBOTTOM

cheshire east

handforth

haTTERSLEY AND MOTTRAM

MANCHESTER

OLDHAM NORTH

OLDHAM SOUTH

RIVERS

ROCHDALE

SALFORD EAST

SALFORD WEST

STOCKPORT

TAMESIDE

TRAFFORD

WESTHOUGHTON