Farnworth

Following on from the Greater Manchester Mayor’s Town Centre Challenge of the late 2010’s which gave Farnworth the opportunity to boost its economic and community value, the town has been identified as part of the Government’s Long Term Plan for Towns Programme. This will provide £20 million over the ten years to 2034 to build on the vision, the 2019 Masterplan and Town Centre Strategy.

The Long Term Plan programme requires the evolution of Bolton Towns Board to allow a specific Farnworth focus and the development of a refresh of the Vision for Farnworth. At the heart of the new Vision is the expectation that there will be extensive community involvement in shaping the plan and delivering the projects over the coming decade.

Farnworth Town Centre Strategy and Masterplan

In July 2019, Bolton Council formally approved the Town Centre Strategy for Farnworth and Masterplan after extensive consultation with residents, local stakeholders and businesses. At the time a number of interventions were identified and five years on these have either been completed or a well underway.

The Long Term Plan will consider Farnworth beyond the town centre and develop actions to support people across the town so they grow a real sense of community and mutual respect.

Funding

Bolton Council was successful in securing a package of funding to turn the aspirations of the Masterplan into reality. £13.3m from the Future High Street Fund together with funding from the Greater Manchester Investment Fund and the council’s own budgets have already made great inroads into the transformation of Farnworth town centre. The key projects for Farnworth have focussed on;

the repurposing of vacant retail space into a mixed-use community of over 100 homes;
delivering a high quality, flexible community hub from which a range of services can be delivered;
new commercial floorspace to activate the town and deliver job opportunities;
a new public square and improved pedestrian and cycle connections;
delivering an extended and improved Leisure Centre to support health and wellbeing outcomes for the community.

Next steps

The next phase for Farnworth comes with the inclusion of the town in the Long Term Plan for Towns programme. This programme allocates £20m over a ten year period for projects that will address key issues facing the residents and businesses of the town. To help the development of the plan, a dataset of issues compiled by the Office of National Statistics has been provided. The funding will be released evenly over the decade and unlike previous funds which have focused on generally large scale capital works, the funding can be used to support smaller scale community initiatives and activities like building social trust, supporting young people into training or employment, improving transport and mobility and public safety and security.

The Long Term Plan is to be submitted by 31^st July 2024*. It is expected to provide detailed costed proposals for the first three years with a broad outline of objectives and approaches to cover the remaining seven years. These will be developed into projects over time.

*Following the election, the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government has suspended the date for submitting the Long Term Plan for Towns nationally. The Farnworth plan is well advanced but is awaiting further responses from MHCLG setting out the revised schedule, and any changes that are envisaged to the process. The webpage will be updated with information as soon as the Council is informed and the Board will be kept up to date with progress.

Have your say

The Council is leading the process of engaging with the community to identify projects for inclusion in the plan. This will include meetings with local stakeholders, workshops with community groups and online participation.

Consultation on the plan is ongoing during May, June and July 2024.

We would like to invite residents and stakeholders to contribute to the plan through sharing ideas.

To have your say, click here.

Projects

In June 2023, Farnworth Leisure Centre reopened with a new dance studio, extended gym, new entrance area and increased car parking following an investment of nearly £1.7m of Future High Street Fund. The improvements have resulted in an impressive increase in the use of the facility. The project was completed on time and within budget by local construction firm Seddon and Clear Futures.

In late 2023, the former market precinct and shops on Brackley Street were demolished and construction began on Capital&Centric’s development of 94 apartments and houses, over 20000 sq ft of space for bars, cafes and shops and a new community hub. The scheme will include lush landscaping with attractive walkways to link Brackley Street and King Street making easier for residents and visitors to explore the town.

In April 2024, work is scheduled to begin on the Streets for All project, creating an attractive public space in the heart of the town and creating a better environment on Market Street for pedestrians, cyclists ad public transport users. The two phases of this work is expected to be completed by March 2026.

All of these projects were identified in the Farnworth Masterplan of 2019 and have been funded by the £13.3m Future High Street Fund.

Project Proposals

We are welcoming applications for project funding in accordance with the Intervention themes. These can be found in the intervention themes document.

Please complete a project proposal form and return it to cathy.palmer@bolton.gov.uk by 31^st May.