Our Centres

Proposed Approach

Oldham’s centres play a vital role in meeting the needs of people of all ages, through a wide range of shops, services, community, leisure, cultural and employment opportunities. The centres are an important contributor to local identity, acting as a focal point for surrounding communities.

There is a need to diversify our centres to promote vitality and vibrancy and their long-term sustainable future. As the role of traditional retail reduces within our centres and new homes are built within them, their importance as community lifelines that connect our residents to services and the local environment will increase. The connectivity they provide as transport hubs to key services, open spaces and neighbourhoods will be essential and the services that are provided within them will foster a sense of community and vibrancy.

The management of the future development of our centres will ensure their long-term success, with a clear focus on sustaining and creating vibrant destinations where activity can continue into the evening, with the retention of a robust retail presence complemented by a varied mix of uses including a leisure and community offer. Opportunities will be taken to make the most of the unique identity of each of the borough’s centres and the opportunities within them, access to and through centres will be improved and improvements to the public realm of our centres will be delivered.

The policies listed below are designed to support the town centres in Oldham. A brief summary of them is given under each heading.

• Policy C1 - Our Centres
  • Policy C1, focuses on promoting and enhancing the vitality and viability of the borough's centres for long-term success. The policy sets out our retail hierarchy and underpins the importance of each centre providing a robust convenience retail function, aiming to minimise the need for residents to travel further. Additionally, it advocates for the inclusion of other main town centre uses and housing to complement the convenience retail function in each centre. The overall intention is to create a balanced and diverse mix of uses that contribute to the resilience and sustainability of Oldham's centres.
• Policy C2 - Local Services and Facilities
  • Policy C2, focuses on the contribution of locally available services to vibrant communities, emphasising the importance of providing convenient facilities near people's homes to reduce the need for travel and serve less mobile community members.
• Policy C3 - Retail and Leisure Impact Assessments and Sequential Tests
  • Policy C3, outlines the criteria and procedures for considering main town centre development outside of existing centres. In essence, this policy sets out a framework for assessing and approving main town centre developments outside existing centres, ensuring alignment with national planning policy, the sequential approach, and thorough impact assessments to evaluate potential effects on the local catchment area and other centres within the borough.
• Policy C4 - Changes of use and redevelopment within the borough’s centres
  • Policy C4, outlines guidelines for managing changes of use and redevelopment within the borough's centres. This policy aims to strike a balance between supporting changes that enhance the centres' vitality and diversity while ensuring that these changes do not negatively impact footfall, retail functions, and the overall character of the centres. The guidelines also address the specific considerations for Sui Generis uses and the provision of residential properties within centres.

To read the policies in full, please download the chapter extract which is available in the "downloads" section of this project page.

If, once you have read the policies and supporting information, you wish to comment on the proposed policies, then please use the survey below, to do so.