Contents:
- Editor's welcome
- Paul Waugh: From Rochdale to Westminster
- Rachel Winnard: One in Two Million
- Rochdale Sixth Form College wins at prestigious Further Education awards
- Rev Mark Coleman
- Baillie Street Quarter »
- Touchstones reopens with new exhibitions
- Greater Manchester Fire Service Museum
- Highlights of a Mayoral Year
- Fancy dress posties raise £1,700 for MIND
- John Swinden’s Captain Tom 100 challenge
- Littleborough’s Tackling Minds to become first organisation to work with NHS in prescribing angling
- Keith Hicks retires after 33 years of service at RAFC
- Bid for local digital radio signal
- Carpet Creations celebrates 25 years in business
- Help fill Springhill’s gardens with sunflowers in memory of your loved ones
- Local author reminisces about Rochdale high streets in the 80s and 90s in new book
- After the storm, the healthy hazy days of summer
- Rochdale Heartbeat honoured with Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service
- Ian Jenkins: Forty Years of Making Music
- Hairdressing Trend - Babylights
- Lasting Power of Attorney
- Cupcakes recipe
- Brown’s Cakes celebrates 10 years
- Beauty Feature: Coming back strong after lockdown
- Take a walk at Ealees
Summer 2021Baillie Street Quarter
Rochdale town centre’s haven of independent shops receives a new identity as the Baillie Street Quarter
A historic street with several Grade-II listed buildings, Baillie Street is home to independent shops, bars and restaurants, plus several ginnels including Bull Brow, The Butts Avenue and The Bank steps.
Now the key route between the Riverside Shopping Complex, Yorkshire Street and the Exchange Shopping Centre, Baillie Street is being rebranded as the Baillie Street Quarter due to its unique sense of place.
The Business Improvement District (BID) team has been carrying out a variety of improvements along Baillie Street to complement the council’s improvement works at The Butts Avenue.
The works include: cleaning street cabinets; installing hanging baskets and planters; jet washing shops, doorways and door entrances; painting doorways; removing disused signs; and relocating commercial bins to a less prominent location.
“When a place has a unique and distinctive sense of place, it becomes memorable and in order to help define the identity of this area a series of small scale, yet important, changes are proposed,” said Paul Ambrose, BID Manager.
“Interventions include installing Baillie Street Quarter signage at key entry points and working with the businesses to provide them with branded materials which they can use.
“The new Baillie Street logo incorporates the entrance to the former William Deacon’s Manchester and Salford Bank which lies at 12 Baillie Street. This entrance is one of the key features of the street, providing an eye-grabbing presence for those passing through.
“The logo is to be adopted by the Baillie Street independent traders, which will contribute to the sense of the street as a destination in its own right.
“There is still a lot of work to do but it is exciting to see the progression of this much-loved and vibrant street.”
Sarah Bleasdale, owner of Heaven Scent, 3 Baillie Street, added: “As a new business, the welcome and support I have received from the other businesses on Baillie Street has been amazing.
“The street is full of beautiful buildings and I really love the new branding for the area and it is something I am looking to adopt and use.”
Paul Ambrose added: “If you are interested in opening a business in the town centre, please contact the Rochdale BID Team by emailing .
“We at the BID will give you as much support as we can.”