Page 22 - Real Rochdale Issue 18 Summer 2023

Rochdale Development
Agency celebrates its
30th anniversary
1993: John Major was Prime Minister, the
average house price was £51,210, people were
driving Ford Escorts, a loaf of bread was 55p -
and if you had a mobile phone (only 5% of the
population did), it may well have been a Nokia
101.
1993 is however significant for another reason,
Rochdale Development Agency was born.
The RDA was the idea of Barrie Bernstein, a
prominent manufacturer in the area, who -
through lack of support from the council at the
time - had been forced to move his business,
a kitchen manufacturer employing more than
1,300 people from Middleton to Bolton.
REAL ROCHDALE - SUMMER 2023
In November 2006, Rochdale
Borough Council granted Mr
Bernstein its highest
possible accolade, the
Freedom of the Borough, in
recognition of his outstanding
service to the area and in
particular reflected the
leading role he played in the
founding of the Rochdale
Training and Enterprise
Council and the creation of
the RDA.
Barrie was a true Rochdalian:
he was instrumental in
establishing collaborative
working between the public
and private sector - a model
which continues to this day
bringing with it many benefits
to Rochdale’s residents and
businesses alike.
It is fair to say that, in 1993,
Rochdale, Heywood,
Middleton and the Pennines
district were very different
places.
Kingsway Business Park didn’t
exist, nor did Heywood
Distribution Park; Middleton
Arena hadn’t been built and
the River Roch in the town
Being a Rochdalian however, Mr Bernstein centre was still covered.
wasn’t prepared to let this go; he knew
Rochdale could do better, and he wanted to
support the town. He had worked with John Kingsway Business Park
Hudson, then the head of planning at Bolton,
on his relocation and knew that if they could
work together to create an agency that would
support businesses moving to the borough of
Rochdale, the area would benefit greatly.
Following lengthy discussions and negotiations
with Rochdale Borough Council, Rochdale
Development Agency was established. Barrie
was its first chair and was in the role for 13
years with John Hudson as its first chief
executive.
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Over the past 30 years, the
RDA - in partnership with the
council - has secured and
safeguarded thousands of
jobs. It has been responsible
for helping local companies
grow and has worked
tirelessly with multiple
agencies to attract companies
such as Danish Crown, which
according to the Financial
Times, is the UK’s biggest
foreign inward investment
post-Brexit. When the Danish
Crown plant is fully
operational, it will create 300
new jobs.
The RDA’s 30th anniversary is
of course a great opportunity
to reflect on how far the
borough has come, but more
than that we have the chance
to look forward to some very
significant projects and plan
for a bright future. 2023 will
see the Grade-I listed
Rochdale town hall reopen
23
as the living, working
centrepiece of Rochdale.
Upperbanks, which
comprises of 242 apartments
and a 146-bedroom hotel,
will be completed in the
summer of this year, bringing
high-quality housing stock
into the town centre.
Work will begin on The
Advanced Machinery and
Productivity Innovation
Centre building at Kingsway.
Atom Valley (the Greater
Manchester Mayoral
Development Zone) will
begin development, which
will realise the many job and
development opportunities.
Councillor John Blundell,
RDA board member, said:
“Looking back at the last 30
years in Rochdale, it is
incredible how much
progress has been made in
physical redevelopment, in-
vestment into the area and -
most importantly - the sheer
number of jobs and
opportunities secured for
residents.
“I’m excited about the future
of the borough and will make
sure that we level up the area
for the benefit of everyone.”
The RDA will be marking the
occasion with events and
news stories focusing on
Rochdale’s businesses.
REAL ROCHDALE - SUMMER 2023