Joint fight to get Bacup back on its feet (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Joint fight to get Bacup back on its feet

3:00pm Saturday 4th July 2009 in

• Skip social links
• Print
• Email
• Comments(3)

A NEW plan is in place to regenerate Bacup, previously described as ‘a place with no identity or role’.

A council report for the future of the town four years ago slammed it as a remote location with a dead heart, a high level of social deprivation and a declining population with crime and drug-abuse issues.

Now councillors have drawn up a core strategy which will be co-written by residents to clear up the “regeneration priority” for Rossendale.

A neighbourhood forum is set to take place on Thursday which will feature a new vision from the council, and will look to save the town from further decline.

A council spokesperson said: “Since the 2005 report we have seen a development with the local markets and housing regeneration.

“Bacup is a priority for us, there is no doubt about that.

“Our meeting is to consult with the people of Stacksteads, Weir and Britannia about the key issues that have prevented development in the area.

“Though the core elem-ents to the new vision are more optimistic than the Masterplan Issues and Options Report, the new strategy pulls no punches in highlighting Bacup's short-comings.

It reads: “Bacup is a widely acknowledged example of a well preserved mill town that developed through the prosperous years of the Industrial Revolution, and has changed relatively little since.

“However, it is fair to say that there are a number of issues that need to be addressed, and furthermore which need to be addressed taking into account Bacup’s historic character and distinctive sense of place.

“Bacup is a regeneration priority area.”

The previous report claimed that Bacup had a poor self image, poor external image and a lack of role and identity within Rossendale and the sub- region.

It stated: “Bacup is a town without open spaces, trees, insufficient car parking, poor pedestrian enviro-ment, poor traffic circulation, poor access from surrounding residential areas, empty shops and poor quality of shopping.”

The meeting will take place at Stacksteads Methodist Church, Newchurch Road, at 7pm.

To download the new core strategy, visit www. rossendale.gov.uk/site/ scripts/download_info.php?downloadID=625.