Potential New Community Space for Sidlow

The Parish Council recognises that the community of Sidlow needs a public space where they can meet and hold events as there is nothing in the area.

At the September 2024 Council meeting, councillors reviewed three options to pursue to provide a community space in Sidlow which were re-opening of the Three Horseshoes pub, re-purpose Emmanuel Church or building a new building on gifted land.

Councillors agreed various actions to conduct ongoing factfinding and business case ratification. Councillors held a meeting to brainstorm information, secured to date, to help make an informed decision on the best way to move forward and from this, the recommendation was that the most viable option is to provide a new build community space.

This was based on the following reasons:

• The Three Horseshoes is privately owned. Councillors are aware of a consortium working on a bid for the pub should it come onto the market however, it has been closed for the last five years and any reopening is dependent on serval factors. At present this does not meet the Parish Councils’ requirements.

• Although a repurposing of Emmanuel Church has support of church seniors, there are challenges such as any crossing of the A217, a lack of outdoor space, and costs of conversion.

• A new build scheme of a temporary 25 year nature in the heart of Sidlow overcomes many challenges seen with other options having outside space, easy access and no ownership issues.

At the October Council meeting, Councillors noted and agreed at this time the new build option on Green Belt land seemed the most viable option. The Parish Council has been fortunate with a resident confirming they will gift a ½ acre of Green Belt Land. Planning legislation protects development on Green Belt so there must be very special circumstances to outweigh the harm to Green Belt to allow any development to go ahead. However, if we adhere to the Caravans Act, we could build a temporary building which is more likely to obtain approval. If well maintained, the life of the structure can be indefinite.

We envisage having a building of approximately 20m x 6.8m and enable car parking for up to twenty-five cars including disabled spaces together with the possibility of charging facilities for EV’s. There will also be designated Cycle Racks.

The intended use of the community space is to provide a hall for hire for activities such as child and toddler group, fitness, dance, meetings and parties, celebrations, and funeral gatherings. We are also exploring options to have a café and shop to service the community and the public. This facility will enable use for village events such as the annual party and village fireworks.

The project will cost anything from £350,000 upwards. Most funding will be through grant funding with the potential of a small loan through the Public Works Loan board.

Councillors have continued to hold meetings with other organisations who have been through similar projects so we can gather further information. This includes assessing risks, reviewing budget costs, business cases, grant funding opportunities, identifying startup costs to conduct feasibility design, planning application submission and legal statute requirements.

In December we held a public consultation to obtain resident feedback on our proposal to date. We will now analyse the comments to help shape our decisions for the next stage. There is still time if you would like to comment so please complete the questionnaire below.

If any resident would like to get involved to help take these initiatives forward, please contact claire.minter@salfordsandsidlowpc.org.uk.