Sparth Then And Now > Future Map

What will the future hold for Sparth? Our hopes and aspirations?
The Youth Group from the community centre came together to talk about their hopes and aspirations for Sparth in the future.They decided to make a map of the area based on the Masterplan idea undertaken for Housing Market Renewal. Here is their wish list:- Click on the images to enlarge

Leisure Facilities
A new leisure centre should include indoor cricket facilities, a swimming pool, outside markings for 5 a side football, tennis, badminton, basketball and netball courts. It should also include changing facilities and a steam room, sauna and treatment rooms. Within the complex there should also be a full size astro-turf football pitch with floodlights and seating for 3-400 people.

Housing
Properties identified for future building in Sparth should be more suited to the families living in the area, being 3 or 4 bedrooms, two living rooms and off street parking. The group thought that all new homes should definitley have solar heating.

Housing
Ejazal Hussain is 16 years old, he lives in a terraced house with 4 family members.

Housing
In the future Ejazal wants to live in a mansion, with a pool.

Housing
Ahmid is 13 years old he lives in a detached house with 7 family members.

Mosque
Ejazal goes to the Mosque to pray as often as he can. He sees the mosque being used in the future for community meetings and talks. Ahmid goes to the Mosque to listen to talks every month. He sees the mosque as a teaching centre for reading Arabic (the Quran) also for praying. Omar goes to the mosque as often as he can. Abbas goes to the mosque to pray whenever he is free. Abbas sees the mosque being used for community talks and religious gatherings. Shamass goes to the mosque to pray at least once a day and sees the mosque being used for prayer times and Arabic classes (Quran) Waqaas goes to the Mosque to read Friday prayers ( Friday congregation / gathering) and sees the mosque being used for Islamic teaching, culture and history programs for residents. Husnain goes to the mosque to pray and learn to recite the Quran and in the futures sees the mosque being used for Praying and teaching children Arabic ( Quran) Athsham goes to the Mosque in Ramadan and in the school holidays including Friday prayers. In the future the mosque should be used for praying and Islamic teaching. Shahid goes to the mosque every Friday ( Friday prayers ). In the future the mosque should be used for praying, reading and learning more about Islam. Shoaib goes to the Mosque to learn to recite the Quran and Friday prayers. In the future the Mosque should be used for praying and Islamic studies. Esrar goes to the mosque to pray as often has he can. In the future the Mosque should have teaching classes, English and Arabic.

Housing
In the future Ahmid wants to live in a mansion.

Housing
Omar Shafi is 14 years old he lives in a small mansion with 7 family members.

Housing
In the future Shahid would like to live in a large mansion.

Housing
Abbas is 15 years old, he lives in a terraced house.

Housing
In the future Abbas would like to live in the biggest house ever.

Housing
Shamass Hafeez is 15 years old he lives in a terraced house with 4 family members.

Housing
In the future Shamass would like to live in a semi detached house.

Housing
Waqaas is 16 years old he lives in a terraced house with 4 family members in the future Waqaas would like to live in a mansion.

Housing
Husnain Ishtaq is 13 years old he lives in a terraced house with 4 members of family. In the future Husnain would like to live in 50 cent’s crib

Housing
Athsham Ahmed is 14 years old he lives in a terraced house with 2 other family members.

Leisure Facilities
Omar would like to see new leisure facilities built for snooker club, swimming pool and other sports activities.

Housing
In the future Athsham would like a big home with a driveway, garage and a swimming pool.

Housing
Shahid Karamat is 15 years of age he lives in a big terraced house with 6 other members of family. In the future he would like a big home, drive way and a big garden

Leisure Facilities
Abbas would like to see new leisure facility built used as a sports centre and Shamass would like new leisure facilities built for a theme park also a sports arena.

Leisure Facilities
Waqaas would like new leisure facilities built for a gym, indoor football and a cricket pitch, in comparision, Husnain would like new leisure facilities built for Bungee jumping, rock climbing, jumping off a cliff, ski diving and a theme park.

Community Centre
The Centre was officially opened in March 1985 by Sir Cyril Smith (MP for Rochdale at the time) & Belinda Kelly (then a member of the Centre's Youth Club), and Sparth Community Centre Association is a registered Charity (no.1076292) and a Company Limited by Guarantee (no.3714966). It is core-funded by Rochdale MBC and is run by a voluntary Management Committee.

The Centre is a purpose-built, single storey building with a large hall, smaller hall, two offices and a well equipped kitchen, plus an outdoor kick pitch, a boules pitch and two adjoining play areas (one for younger children and one for older children). A wide range of facilities and services are offered to local people and the wider community, including user groups from "Stay 'N' Play" and Nursery, to a luncheon club and dance group for older people aged 50+ years.

Leisure Facilities
Athsham would like new leisure facilities to include a sports centre for different kind of sports and a swimming pool. Esrar would like new leisure facilities to include Swimming pool, five a side indoor football pitch, Cinema and a Arena.

Housing
Shoaib Mohammed is 13 years old he lives in a terraced house with 6 members of family.

Leisure Facilities
Ejazal he would like to see new facilities built so that they can be used for different sport activities, whereas Ahmid would like to see new leisure facility built for a gym.

Employment
The future employment in the area should be focused around the new developments such as the leisure centre. This could offer different types of employment around fitness instructors, life guards and receptionists. The cafe culture could offer employment such as chefs, waiting table staff and bar staff. A good mixture of skilled and unskilled posts which could be offered - after appropriate training - initially to Sparth residents, which will in turn help to regenerate the area.

Other employment opportunities could be focused around the security and cleanliness of the area, this will be funded through payments from households in the area - therefore all work will be sustainable.

Housing
In the future Shoaib would like to live in a big house with a garden and drive way and a garage.

Housing
Esrar Ali Khan is 18 years old he lives in a terraced house with 4 members of family.

Housing
Esrar future home will be a semi detached house on Bosworth Street.

A three phase multi million pound development project
The Project is designed to regenerate Sparth and would help achieve these objectives.

If successful: The first phase will see the cleaning up of the River Roch throughout Sparth and construction of a new retaining wall on both sides of the River covering the river that goes from Mellor Street to Brimrod. Along its banks will be new developments of two and three bedroomed apartments with balconies that will initially be offered to existing residents of Sparth. Alongside these appartments there will be Riverside Cáfes which will offer employment opportunities to local people.

The second phase of the project will be to develop the existing terraced properties, some of which are unfit for habitation. The development of this phase will replace the existing properties with three and four bedroomed semi-detached houses with off road parking, most of which will be eco friendly with solar panel roofing to provide heating and hot water.

The final phase of the development will see the old Boots warehouse and the Generation Centre disappear to make way for a multi purpose leisure centre. The leisure centre will be sustainable through its revenue from the different activities it will offer, and again it will offer employment opportunities for the residents of Sparth.

Riverside Business
After fully developing the riverbanks from the bridge at Mellor Street through to Brimrod (to include riverside walks), the development of cafes and bistros alongside the stretch would encourage and support a cafe culture.

Riverside Business
However some of the Youth Group voted for a more lively area consisting of night clubs, cafes, snooker clubs, takeaways, shops and an ice-cream parlour.

Leisure Facilities
Shahid would like the new leisure facilities to be a pool club and a gym but Shoaib would like the new leisure facility to be a big sports centre.

Leisure Facilities
A new leisure centre should include indoor cricket facilities, a swimming pool, outside markings for 5 a side football, tennis, badminton, basketball and netball courts. It should also include changing facilities and a steam room, sauna and treatment rooms. Within the complex there should also be a full size astro-turf football pitch with floodlights and seating for 300 – 400 people.

Riverside Business
A clean place, somewhere to sit, with pathways and trees and perhaps some houses or apartments was voted for by several youth group members – with one requiring a plumbers merchant so he could go to work there.