Manchester names leaders for £100m neighbourhood fund

Aisha Turner Author 2026-05-27 19:17 4 min read

Up to £100 million is being lined up for five Manchester neighbourhood areas over the next decade, with four local chairs now named to help decide how the money should be used.

Manchester City Council has announced the first Pride in Place Scheme chairs for Benchill South & Wythenshawe Central, Clayton Vale, Gorton South, and Harpurhey South & Monsall. Each selected area is expected to receive up to £20 million across 10 years, with Neighbourhood Boards intended to put residents at the centre of spending decisions.

The fifth Manchester area, Moss Side West, is still going through the chair and board appointment process. That means the full citywide leadership structure for the programme is not yet complete.

Four areas now have named Pride in Place chairs

The chairs announced so far will lead newly created Neighbourhood Boards, which are expected to shape local priorities and guide how Pride in Place funding is spent.

Benchill South & Wythenshawe Central will be chaired by Eamonn O’Neal OBE, a broadcaster, journalist, Wythenshawe native and former High Sheriff of Manchester. He said he wanted projects to focus on what matters most to people in Wythenshawe, including sustainable cultural initiatives and public realm work that matches local priorities.

Gorton South will be chaired by Jo Sharples, who has worked on community-led initiatives in Longsight over the past six years. Her background as an architect is expected to feed into discussions about place, culture and neighbourhood identity across parts of Longsight, Gorton, Abbey Hey and Levenshulme.

Clayton Vale will be chaired by Andrew Wickens, an Anglican priest who has lived in the area for 16 years. His board will cover parts of Clayton, Openshaw, Newton Heath and Miles Platting.

Harpurhey South & Monsall will be chaired by Tom Woodcock, who has experience in the voluntary, healthcare and charity sectors and has lived in Harpurhey ward for three decades.

The money is long-term, but not a blank cheque

The headline figure is large, but the structure matters. The programme is described as up to £20 million for each neighbourhood area over 10 years, rather than a one-off immediate payment.

That timetable means boards will need to make choices about sequencing: which projects come first, which require wider partners, and which can realistically be maintained after capital spending or grant funding has been used.

The neighbourhoods named by the council are Benchill South & Wythenshawe Central; Clayton Vale; Gorton South; Harpurhey South & Monsall; and Moss Side West, covering parts of Moss Side and Whalley Range.

The Manchester announcement follows other Pride in Place appointments elsewhere in England, including a £20 million regeneration board appointment in Corby.

What residents may see change first

The source announcement does not list final projects, deadlines or confirmed construction schemes. The practical change at this stage is governance: local chairs are now in place for four boards that will influence how priorities are set.

That could cover public realm improvements, cultural projects, community facilities, local services, skills work or other regeneration priorities, depending on what residents and boards identify through the process.

The council has framed Pride in Place as resident-led. In practice, that places pressure on the Neighbourhood Boards to prove that engagement is broad enough to reach people who do not usually attend council meetings, consultation events or local forums.

For residents, the immediate issue is whether their street or estate falls inside one of the selected neighbourhood areas. The named areas are not whole wards in every case, and several cover parts of larger communities.

Moss Side West appointment still to come

Manchester City Council said the process of appointing a chair and board for Moss Side West is still underway and will be announced later.

Council leader Bev Craig said the chairs’ direction and guidance would be vital over the next decade as the work begins across Manchester communities. She described the programme as a chance for change to be driven by the people who call those areas home.

Source: Manchester City Council

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This article is based on Manchester City Council's 2026 announcement of Pride in Place chair appointments and selected neighbourhood areas.

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• Matched the four named chairs to the four neighbourhood areas listed in the council announ...
• Separated the announced four appointments from Moss Side West, where the chair process is...
• Checked that the funding is described as up to £20 million per area over 10 years, not an...
• Used Manchester as the geographic scope because the selected areas are within the city.

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Manchester City Council

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Manchester

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2026-05-27 19:17

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Article contextPeople & topics3#7

Eamonn O'NealJo SharplesBev Craig

#Benchill South and Wythenshawe Central#Clayton Vale#Gorton South#Harpurhey South and Monsall#Manchester neighbourhood funding#Manchester Pride in Place#Neighbourhood Boards

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