Locals in Manchester’s Ancoats and Broughton share struggles with rising costs from gentrification and redevelopment.
Many people now live on narrowboats there, and the area also has lots of small pets. Broughton is similar; family homes and flats replaced warehouses there. New Salford residents now live there, and it is a short walk to Manchester’s city center.
But, few affordable homes were built when these areas changed. Some wonder who benefits from this redevelopment. The study listed both areas as gentrified. Gentrification means poorer families move out, and wealthier people quickly replace them.
Common Wealth measured changes from 2012 to 2023. They looked at population changes, house price growth, wage growth, and residents’ origins. Ancoats ranked fourth with a score of 67.7, while Broughton ranked eighth with a score of 50.4. Some parts of these areas scored even higher. A report author, Sophie Flinders spoke about the displacement caused.
Neil Tate has lived near New Islington Marina since 1990. He has seen the area change a lot. He said it was very rough when he first moved there; car wheels would often be stolen. The Cardroom estate used to be there too. He recalls drugs and car fires. Now, prices are very high there.
Ancoats house prices were £18,000 in 1995. By 2012, they were £125,000. Now, they cost £294,000. Neil dislikes the changes. He calls Ancoats a concrete jungle and thinks it is awful, overcrowded, and has too many dogs.
Asle Frydenlund moved to Ancoats in 2010. He left for Beswick after three years. Back then, there was nothing there, he said, with spaces, kids, and open areas. He hoped for a green space for Manchester. Instead, it became another concrete area.
Owain Williams works in Ancoats. He thinks it’s a middle-class playground. His colleagues cannot afford to live there. Maureen, a resident, thinks Ancoats is amazing. She says it seems like the countryside and likes the mix of old and new buildings.
Larry remembers Ancoats as a bomb site in the 50s. Rhiannon McGoldrick moved from London to Ancoats. She said it was recommended as a chilled place, likes how quiet it is, and her rent is a good deal now. But she worries prices will rise.
Ruth Tansey moved to Broughton when she was 15. She thinks the area is going downhill. It is overcrowded with too much traffic. Shop prices and house prices are rising, and some cannot afford to live there. Shops are also closing, and homelessness exists.
June said Broughton used to be much cheaper, but it is now getting more expensive. People move there because it is close to the city center. More houses are being built there, and house prices have significantly increased lately.
Jimmy Gage moved to Broughton in 2002. He has seen house prices dramatically rise. Kyle Richardson moved in after university. He loves living there despite rising prices. His rent recently went up by £200, and he hears Southern accents more often now.
Kyle thinks some benefit from the changes. But, others struggle with the rising costs.