The site is located off Manchester Road, approximately 2 miles south of Heywood town centre and 8 miles north of Manchester City Centre.

The site has direct access to Junction 19 of the M62 and 3 miles east of the M60/M62/M66 intersection, providing access to the entire North West region.

There is a new 2km link road currently under construction immediately south of the site and expected to be completed later this year, improving access to J19 of the M62 and the wider regional motorway network.

The site is currently let to the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities for the storage of documents. This tenant has served notice to terminate the lease and will vacate in the Spring of 2023. The site has previously been used by the Royal Air Force.

A Lawful Development Certificate was granted by the Council on 14 December 2021 (ref 21/01298/CPE), which confirmed that the site’s existing lawful use was Use Class B8 (storage and distribution).

The site is not allocated for a specific use as part of the Council’s Development Plan. However, planning policy supports the principle of reusing of previously developed land and the continuation of employment uses at the site.

The site’s southern and western boundaries lie adjacent to the South Heywood Masterplan area which comprises, up to 1,000 new homes, 135,460 sq m of employment floorspace and 2,500 sq m of commercial uses, a primary school and a new link road from Junction 19 of the M62. This was granted outline planning permission in March 2020 (ref. 16/01399/HYBR) and since this time, several reserved matters submissions have either been submitted or approved for various forms of development.

Trammell Crow Company has undertaken extensive and positive pre-application engagement with the Council prior to the start of this consultation exercise. This has included discussions around the design and layout of the scheme to ensure suitable heights and separation distances between existing and new development surrounding the site.

Trammell Crow Company (TCC), is a leading global developer and investor in commercial real estate. More information on TCC can be found here.

TCC acquired the Heywood Stores site in May 2022 with the aim of developing the site for modern logistics and employment space that meets the latest requirements of potential occupiers.

TCC’s investment plans for Heywood Stores will help attract new employers to Rochdale, create hundreds of new jobs in the area, both in its development and when it’s operational, replacing an old and no longer fit-for-purpose space with one that is well designed, environmentally friendly, and makes a positive contribution in Heywood and the surrounding area.

The Heywood Stores site is TCC’s third acquisition in the UK.