Author: Trevor Baxter

First published in the Saddleworth Independent   TENANTS of First Choice Homes Oldham (FCHO) have chance to win three luxury hampers worth more than £150 each. The housing association’s festive giveaway also includes a handmade wreath and vouchers to spend on food locally. One of the Christmas hampers Delph-based Albion Farm Shop and Café have…

First published in the Saddleworth Independent   FRANK Thornton was one of the first to hot foot it down to Greenfield’s new shop when the Old Cobblers opened for business. Other locals with affection for the premises soon followed, keen to reminisce with owners Dave and Lou. Ivor with handmade sign The proprietors now have…

First published in the Saddleworth Independent   AN enterprising pair have shown plenty of bottle to open a new Saddleworth business during the coronavirus pandemic. Lou Henderson and Dave Bell have put their heart and sole into taking over a former Cobblers shop at Road End in Greenfield. While future success for the pair is…

First published in the Saddleworth Independent   PROPOSALS to build 78 new homes in Diggle – designed to be “in keeping with the character of the village”- have taken another step forward. A full planning application for the £15 million scheme off Huddersfield Road and adjacent to the site of the new Saddleworth School has…

First published in the Saddleworth Independent   A GROTTON road could lay claim to being one of the most pothole-littered in Saddleworth. Yet it might be 2022 at least before Thornley Lane is re-surfaced much to the dismay of residents and campaigners. Mark Kenyon says there are nearly 40 potholes in a half-mile stretch of…

First published in the Saddleworth Independent   A DENSHAW woman has been charged with county lines and modern slavery offences as part of a major police operation. On Friday, November 20, 2020, officers arrested and charged Stephanie Beard, 26, of Dumfries Avenue along with 21-year-old Nicole Crighton of Wilson Way, Oldham. Beard has been charged with conspiracy to supply class A drugs, possession…

First published in the Saddleworth Independent   OLDHAM Council tonight (Wednesday, November 25) postponed a decision on whether to approve the controversial Greater Manchester Spatial Framework. Salford and Stockport local authorities had previously failed to reach a decision on their boroughs’ contribution to meeting housing targets between now and 2037. Plans for fletchers Mill, Greenfield…

First published in the Saddleworth Independent   DEBBIE Abrahams warns any future housing development on the Fletchers Mill site in Greenfield must address access issues caused by visitor numbers to Dovestone Reservoir. A total of 171 homes are proposed to be built in the vicinity of the one-time paper mill site (now named Chew Brook…

First published in the Saddleworth Independent   A GRAFFITI vandal has been condemned for spraying a five-foot high slogan on the wall of a towpath bridge on the Huddersfield Narrow Canal in Greenfield. The culprit has daubed the words ‘98% survival rate? on the brickwork. A specialist machine will be brought in by the Canal…

First published in the Saddleworth Independent   By Charlotte Green – Local Democracy Reporter COUNCIL bosses are consulting on making millions of pounds of cuts – including axing funding for charities and the opening hours of Oldham Library – as they face a £30m funding shortfall. Oldham Council has launched a public consultation on a…