Meet the people of Ancoats

Originally from West Yorkshire, Rob works in industrial relations in Wigan. He moved to Ancoats in August 2006 after his wife began hankering after a move back to Manchester, where she was a student. “I liked the idea of city living too, as we were living in a small village at the time,” he says, “we looked around quite a bit and eventually saw this development.” He adds, “Claire telephoned me, we met after work, and without going away to get any advice we put a deposit down on the spot.”

You can see where Ancoats is going. The bubble burst a bit after we’d bought and we’re all in suspended animation but you can see what’s happened in Castlefield and you can see that as more businesses come in that the same thing will happen here.

Rob’s work means he tends to leave early and return late but weekends are when he makes the most of his location. “We do actually spend a lot of time indoors,” he says, “Because we’re so near to the city centre we don’t have to make a big deal about going out. When we lived in Huddersfield we’d drive in, get out, spend time trying to find somewhere to eat. Now we find ourselves going out, popping back home for a little bit and going back out again. It’s incredibly convenient.”

You might think that coming from a small rural village would make this sort of city-centre living difficult but, says Rob, “There’s a very villagey feeling in this development. We all know each other and we’re all very friendly.”

Young is on the Royal Mills residents association, where he acts as police liaison officer. He and his wife were in the advantageous position of joining the association before they even moved in: “When we were moving in we looked online and found a website set up by a fellow resident,” he says, “This made us aware of any housekeeping issues but there was a social thread too, making it a bit like a mature halls of residence. Before we even moved in we came to a party here and got to know people.”

Rob considers himself an Ancoats Person, in as much as there is no such thing. “The notion of a median resident doesn’t make any sense,” he says, “There are people of all ages and backgrounds here, making it a real cosmopolitan mix. I think what we all have in common in Royal Mills is that we’re all attracted to the building and its heritage.”

Why choose Ancoats?

The reason? Simply Royal Mills. “The historic aspect, the significance of Ancoats and its role in the cotton industry really appealed to me,” Rob says, “We’ve got the advsntage of brand new and modern living space but the bulding is grade-II listed. It’s a fantastic combination. What I also love,” he adds, “is the fact that the nearest place to shop are the shops at Picaddily Station. That gives you an indication of how central it is."

James, who runs his own web design business, 3squared.co.uk, moved to Royal Mills in 2006 with his partner. Setting up the Royal Mills Community Website meant that he knew most of his neighbours before he’d even moved in.

Says James, “Our residents association is really active and this year it’s really going to engage with the wider community. We’re aware that there are grants available for each ward and our ward has been undersubscribed so we might start looking at things like trees and street furniture.”

We’ve got the city centre on the doorstep without the mess and noise.

One of the lovely things about his building, says James, “is that a lot of the residents moved in to buy and they’re all still here. There are a couple of people who have moved out but have stayed in the loop and even still hang around!”

James and his partner have been able to see the area develop since they moved in: “The roads have got better and we have good streetlighting. The police are always really keen to come to residents’ meetings to see what’s going on too and we really welcome that.”

For them, the best thing about Ancoats is, “the people who live there and make up the community.” What it needs next, however, adds James, “is a gym!”

Why choose Ancoats?

“We chose initially on the distance from Piccadilly Station,” says James, who commutes to Sheffield every day while his partner works in Chester, “It takes me eight minutes to walk to the station.” In fact, he laughs, "it’s a bit TOO convenient really…"I’m only going out for one pint…’'

When Victoria Hand first moved into Royal Mills, she was struck by the friendliness. Thirty-one-year-old Hand bought her flat there in 2006 with her ex-boyfriend after sampling life in Castlefield and MM2, and immediately got involved in the social scene. 

It was so exciting being able to see into everyone’s flat! We’d organise flat-crawls and get people to host a mini-party for an hour and we’d all take our own drinks.

She’s now secretary of the Royal Mills Residents Association (where she owns a flat, though she lives in nearby Vulcan Mill), an organisation which, along with running events such as the aforementioned flat crawl, hosts book groups and updates residents on housekeeping issues with a regular newsletter and events.

A doctor of environmental science, Victoria works in an admin role as a business development officer encouraging interaction between University of Manchester research and local industry. A resident of Manchester for 12 years, she’d sampled everything from student digs to city-slick living before buying in Ancoats.

“Living in MM2 we could see Royal Mills and even though it was a wreck at the time, we could see how exciting it would be to live here,” she says, “It’s the heritage. Such a fantastic building and we also thought if we invested in somewhere a bit different it would probably hold its value better.”

Victoria co-owns her Royal Mills flat with her ex, which she rents out, and rents on her own in nearby Vulcan Mill. “With developments like this you’re bound to get similarly minded people,” she says, “so I had made loads of friends and didn’t want to move too far away. Because most of the people here are owner-occupiers it was very hard to get a flat to rent here,” but, she says, “this means that the people who live here care very much about where they live and have been more willing to create a community.” She adds, “one thing that Manchester has suffered from in the past is a buy-to-let surplus and this has meant that people aren’t forming ties. Here people have formed really strong ties.”

Victoria walks the half-hour to work: “The university starts close to the train station and there’s a footpath to the south campus. I love the fact that it’s so close to the centre and I love living so close to clubs and restaurants.”

Why choose Ancoats?

Coming from Castlefield, Victoria took a risk on an undeveloped area: “Obviously Castlefield is a lot more established with a lot more residents and there is a significant gap between here and New Islington but when the further development goes ahead it’s going to be a really exciting place to live. You can see how amazing it could be.”

Cork-born Kieran O’Donovan and his wife Naomi Gill, from Australia moved to Manchester five years ago after living in London. Says Kieran, “We both really like living in cities but we didn’t want anything too hectic.” He adds, “Manchester is friendly and accessible and Ancoats even more so.”

People keep asking us if we’re leaving the city, now we’re having a baby, but living here, I see no reason…

They run Jump Physio on Lloyd Street, a physiotherapy and sports injury clinic with the strapline, “If it hurts, we’ll help”.

In addition to running the practice, Kieran and Naomi – who live in Royal Mills – are expecting their first child and think Ancoats is a great place to raise a family. “People keep asking us if we’re leaving the city,” says Kieran, “but living here, I see no reason…”

Living nearby and working together means that Kieran and Naomi can be flexible about their working and have lunch together. “In London it would involve an hour’s commute between work and home,” says Kieran.

Kieran is confident that Ancoats will become what they imagined it would, despite the economic downturn. He says, “On a monthly basis you can notice small changes such as buildings getting started and the Ice Plant. There is a sense that things are getting going again.” He’d like to see more green space, some more leisure activities and more places to sit and have coffee. “It would be nice to see some more people coming in and to hit that critical mass,” he says.

While Kieran and Naomi have no plans to leave Ancoats, they say that all the while they’re in the UK, they’ll stay there. You don’t get a better recommendation than that.

Why choose Ancoats?

“We chose Ancoats,” says Kieran, “because it was so close to the city centre. We loved the Royal Mills building and we liked the idea of living in a piece of history.” He adds, “We also saw so much potential in the area.”

www.jumpphysio.com

Rikki, who’s originally from Chester, studied fashion styling at Salford University before moving to London and working in the fashion industry. “A year in London was enough for me so I moved back to Manchester,” she laughs. She and her boyfriend, “a fully fledged-Mancunian”, moved to Ancoats in February 2010.

Moving to the city was a big deal for us, but in Ancoats we feel we have the best of both worlds as it's really peaceful but we’re really close to the city.

Rikki is currently working as a freelance stylist and photographer but also works part-time at Beehive Mill’s Hive Café. The fact that the area is full of creative people and creative companies was a big draw. Steeped in clubland, Rikki has worked in the clubs of Liverpool, Manchester and Ibiza, and is now in the process of setting up a new business, PRE, which, she explains, is “a new concept in beauty and fashion, a 21st-century model designed around the rituals and habits of the modern woman as she prepares for her big night out.” PRE will eventually be a family of stylists, make-up artists and hairdressers providing a personal stylist service.

It’s a real testament to Ancoats’ burgeoning appeal that Rikki and her boyfriend have decided to set up both their home and business there.

Why choose Ancoats?

“After looking at a number of city-centre apartments, we thought the quality and value for money in Flint Glass Wharf was great,” say Rikki.  She chose the futuristic dwelling on Radium Street for its high-tech apartments and access to outdoor space. From working in Hive Café, Rikki says it feels like she knows every single person in Ancoats. “There is a real sense of community here” she says.