PLANS to build 88 homes on the site of two iconic tower blocks in Coldhurst have been approved by the Oldham Council.

Local housing association First Choice Homes Oldham (FCHO) has been given the green light to redevelop land off Vale Drive, Oldham, where the tower blocks Crossbank House and Summervale House currently stand.

The £12m West Vale development, located close to Oldham town centre, will see the two tower blocks demolished and replaced with 88 new homes, including 26 houses – a mix of two, three and four-bedroom family homes, and 62 apartments, which will have one or two bedrooms.

All the new houses will have gardens and there will be driveway car parking for all the houses and 15 per cent of the apartments, as well as cycle parking for all homes at the development.

A recreational space located at Broome Street with a play area is also planned.

The development is set to benefit from £1.14 million from Greater Manchester’s Brownfield Housing Fund allocation, designed to help deliver new homes on formerly developed sites across the city region.

Joel Owen, FCHO’s director of development, said: “We're working hard to create more homes for people in our borough, where there's a shortage of affordable and social housing.


"We’ve got plans to deliver 850 high quality, affordable new homes in Oldham and surrounding areas by 2026 to help bridge the gap. The new homes at West Vale will go towards us reaching that target and creating high quality, modern homes for people who need them."

He added: “We are working with Oldham-based D Hughes Demolition and Excavation to demolish and clear the tower blocks, which will generate multiple benefits for the local area.

“We’ve also established a Resident Engagement Panel and Neighbourhood Network that we meet with regularly to discuss points raised in our consultation and our teams are working hard to plan and deliver community development programmes involving local residents in the scheme.”

Demolition of Crossbank House and Summervale House was approved by Oldham Council in September 2020, with work set to begin at the end of July this year and predicted to last until the end of November.

Construction of the new homes is due to take place in spring 2022 with homes due for completion in autumn 2023.

For more information visit: www.fcho.co.uk.