3.1 Salford is experiencing phenomenal growth. The purpose of this Local Plan is to deliver that growth in a sustainable way that benefits everybody. The city council is committed to inclusive growth and the Local Plan will contribute to wider political priorities which seek to create a fairer, more equal city.
3.2 Salford has seen a turnaround in its fortunes over recent years, reversing decades of population decline and securing high levels of investment. The city is now delivering major growth, in both new housing and new jobs, and is helping to drive forward the Greater Manchester economy. Despite these successes, there are still significant inequalities across the city and areas of deprivation.
3.3 Over the next 20 years, Salford will continue its evolution into a modern global city, and one of the best business and residential locations in the country. This will involve high levels of economic growth, with significant increases in the number of jobs, residents and visitors. The approach will be to continue to accommodate this growth in the most sustainable way, promoting the regeneration of the urban areas and accommodating as much development as possible on previously developed land in accessible locations.
3.4 There will be a strong focus on securing social value from development, ensuring that all residents share in the benefits of the city’s growth, helping to reduce inequalities both within Salford and between the city and other parts of the country. This will include delivering:
- Development that is of a high quality, future-proofed and designed in such a way as to maximise its social and environmental benefits
- Distinctive places that support wellbeing, with high levels of green infrastructure
- Quality of life improvements which, through improving air quality and reducing pollution, will reduce the health divide
- Better open spaces, which will promote healthy lifestyles and are accessible to all, not a privileged few
- More affordable homes and an increase in new homes being built to avert a housing crisis
- Energy efficiency to address the scandal of fuel poverty in the city
- More accessible and adaptable homes so that the needs of disabled people and older people are met
- Local employment and training opportunities
3.5 Those wanting to invest in Salford will be welcomed, on the basis that they will do their best to improve the lives of all residents in the city. This will involve helping to address inequalities, for example in terms of health, skills, incomes and opportunities. There will be an expectation that all developers will sign up to the City Mayor’s Employment Charter, demonstrating their commitment to acting responsibly and supporting social inclusion.
3.6 There is a huge agglomeration of economic activity at the centre of Greater Manchester, including extensive parts of south-east Salford and stretching into central Manchester and north-east Trafford. This central economic area is of fundamental importance to the economic prosperity and prospects of Greater Manchester, and those parts in Salford will be managed so as to realise fully their potential contribution to the success of the city and wider sub-region.
3.7 At the heart of this central economic area is the City Centre, which is located in both Salford and Manchester. Its position as the most significant economic location and largest office market in the country outside London will be further strengthened. It will continue to provide the primary focus for business, retail, leisure, cultural and tourism activity in Greater Manchester. City Centre Salford will continue to undergo considerable transformation, with each of its neighbourhoods having a strong sense of place and being well-integrated with other parts of the City Centre.
3.8 Immediately to the south-west of the City Centre is Salford Quays, which provides an internationally significant cluster of digital and creative uses extending into neighbouring Trafford. Salford Quays will continue to grow as one of the most important economic locations in the country, and will be increasingly recognised globally as an excellent place to work, live and visit.
3.9 Ordsall Waterfront provides a key link between the City Centre and Salford Quays. This role will be enhanced, with it continuing to be developed as a high-density residential-led mixed-use neighbourhood, where high quality development presents a striking waterside setting.
3.10 There are three key existing employment areas on the edge of the City Centre and Salford Quays, at Eccles New Road, Liverpool Street and Cambridge. These areas currently provide a range of important employment functions, but are coming under increasing redevelopment pressures. Their excellent location just outside the City Centre and/or Salford Quays makes it particularly important that the best possible use is made of them. Consequently, their future will be very carefully controlled to ensure that any change is appropriate and fully supports the vital economic functions of the wider area. Masterplans will be developed for each area to manage any change within them, and they will continue to be protected as existing employment areas unless such masterplans indicate otherwise.
3.11 Eccles Town Centre lies within the central economic area, just to the west of the Eccles New Road area and Salford Royal Hospital. It has outstanding transport connections, with a rail station, the terminus of the Salford Quays Metrolink line, a bus station, and junction 2 of the M602 motorway, as well as only being a short distance from the Trafford Centre and Trafford Park. Coordinated improvements to the town centre will be delivered, taking advantage of these opportunities and its heritage, building on its emerging role as a gateway to Salford Quays.
3.12 The Manchester Ship Canal is a unique asset for Greater Manchester, providing an inland waterway that connects to the deep-water shipping facilities at the Port of Liverpool. Port Salford is under construction on the banks of the ship canal, and will deliver a substantial amount of new warehousing floorspace, a new rail spur from the main Manchester-Liverpool rail line, new canal berths, and a series of highway improvements. Once this new transport infrastructure has been delivered, Port Salford will be one of the most attractive and sustainable locations in Greater Manchester for industrial and warehousing development, enabling more goods to be moved by means other than road. In order to take advantage of this potential, and to provide more jobs in the west of the city, the Greater Manchester Spatial Framework proposes an expansion of Port Salford into part of the existing Green Belt to the north and west of Barton Aerodrome.
3.13 The eastern part of the city will continue to be an important focus for coordinated regeneration activity, addressing the high levels of deprivation currently found in some of the inner areas and taking advantage of their close proximity to the opportunities in the City Centre and Salford Quays. Investment will also be directed towards the significant pockets of deprivation elsewhere in the city. Across Salford, there will be a strong emphasis on providing attractive and thriving neighbourhoods, supported by good town centres and other local facilities.
3.14 Around half of the new dwellings in Salford will be delivered in the City Centre and Salford Quays, enabling people to live close to the main locations for employment, shops and leisure, and close to good public transport. Most other new dwellings will be provided within existing neighbourhoods. However, in order to ensure a good mix in terms of the type, affordability and location of new housing, a small proportion of the new homes will be on undeveloped land that will be taken out of the Green Belt through the Greater Manchester Spatial Framework. The sites to be removed from the Green Belt and used for housing development have been carefully selected in order to broaden the range of new housing, retain Green Belt separation between neighbourhoods, promote public transport use and provide high quality living environments. The largest of these sites is to the north of Irlam Station, where there is the potential to deliver a sustainable new neighbourhood that takes advantage of the direct rail connection to the City Centre.
3.15 Salford has a wealth of historic and culturally significant buildings and a wide range of leisure opportunities, making it an attractive location for visitors. The potential to significantly enhance the city’s tourism role will be realised, with new facilities such as RHS Garden Bridgewater helping to attract more visitors to the area and contributing towards the city’s economic success.
3.16 A comprehensive, high quality network of green infrastructure will be established throughout Salford, with key strategic areas being enhanced. Chat Moss will provide a rich wildlife resource and a vital carbon sink, with connections to a wide range of outdoor recreation opportunities. Increased policy protection for the West Salford Greenway will secure this important open space for the long term, and new nature parks will be delivered at the former Swinton wastewater treatment works and at Cutacre in Little Hulton (Logistics North). The Irwell Valley will be enhanced as a key part of the green infrastructure network, with improved green spaces and a coordinated approach to minimising the risk and impacts of flooding. Irwell River Park will make a major contribution to the attractiveness of the City Centre and Salford Quays as places to live and work, providing high quality walking and cycling routes, green spaces and connections to the wider Irwell Valley.
3.17 All new developments will be expected to maximise their environmental benefits, including by minimising their contributions to climate change, maximising the green infrastructure that they incorporate, and providing a net improvement in biodiversity. They will also be required to respond positively to Salford’s rich physical and cultural heritage, delivering high quality design that supports local distinctiveness. This will help to ensure that new development is seen by existing communities to make a positive overall contribution to their neighbourhood.
3.18 A high quality, efficient and accessible transport system will be vitally important to the city’s success, and there will be continued investment in Salford’s transport infrastructure to assist in the delivery of the city’s growth aspirations and enhance Salford residents’ accessibility to key employment and leisure destinations both within and outside of the city. One of the biggest public concerns that must be addressed by new development is the potential impact on transport congestion. The scale of growth will generate an increased demand for travel, and it will be essential that the potential for walking, cycling and using public transport is maximised. At this stage, it is not possible to identify many of the precise transport schemes that will need to be delivered, but work on this will be ongoing in order to ensure the successful implementation of this plan. Where appropriate, it may be necessary to delay development proposals until suitable transport solutions have been identified.
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