Altrincham News
The latest Altrincham news: planning decisions, council and crime updates, business and community stories, each linked back to its official source.
Top story
Altrincham Food Hygiene Ratings: 17 Inspected, 17 Rated 5
All 17 Altrincham, Hale and Timperley premises inspected in September got a 5, as did all 8 in Sale. Trafford's lowest scores were in Stretford and Old Trafford.
More stories
Pubs
Old Packet House Altrincham Reopens After £390,000 Revamp
The Old Packet House on Navigation Road has reopened after a £390,000 refurbishment, with a covered, heated beer garden, a new food menu and cocktails.
Roads
Trafford Resurfacing Dates: Ashley Road Due by December
Trafford has dated every pothole fund scheme. Ashley Road in Altrincham is due to start by December; Lloyd Street and Railway Street wait for spring 2027.
Housing
Trafford Landlord Fines: £35,000 Start for Illegal Eviction
Trafford's new fines policy starts at £35,000 for illegal eviction and £6,000 for refusing tenants on benefits. Full Council votes on 14 October. What it sets.
Hale
Caiman Seized in Hale: Crocodile Kept Without a Licence
A spectacled caiman called Lyle was taken from a Hale home with no dangerous wild animal licence, plus a python. What the law requires, and the £2,000 fine.
Transport
Altrincham Tram Closure: Passes Valid on Train and 263 Bus
Tram season tickets and travelcards will be accepted on Altrincham trains and the 263 bus from 19 October, TfGM says. No replacement bus runs south of Sale.
Jobs
Trafford Claimant Count: Old Trafford 6.5%, Hale 1.0%
Old Trafford's claimant rate is 6.5%, level with Oldham, the highest borough in Greater Manchester. Hale's is 1.0%. August 2026 figures for all 21 wards.
Planning
Little Bollington Data Centre: 60ha Plan, Event 30 Sept
A 60-hectare data centre campus is planned by the Bowdon Roundabout, south of Lymm Road. See the plans at High Legh on 30 September, 4pm to 8pm.
Planning
Sale Bowling Green Homes Refused Against Officer Advice
Councillors refused four homes on Sale's former United Services Club bowling green, rejecting officer advice and a £135,000 open space payment.
House prices
Trafford House Prices Pass £400,000, Fastest in England
Trafford's average home hit £400,688 in July, its first month ever above £400,000, and the fastest annual rise of any of England's 295 districts.
Construction
Building GCSE 2029: North West Short of College Trainers
The North West has 7.7 unfilled college construction teaching posts per 100, above England's 7.2, with about 4,990 more builders needed here every year to 2030.
Transport
Altrincham Tram Closure: 14 Days Off, Bus Starts at Sale
No trams from Altrincham for 14 days from 19 October, and none of the four replacement bus routes serves the town. The nearest starts at Sale.
Planning
Trafford Planning Committee Loses Call-In from 31 October
Councillors lose the power to call planning applications in to committee on 31 October. Two people, meeting in private, will decide what gets a public hearing.
Schools
Altrincham Grammar Win First Knight-Stokes Cup at Lord's
Altrincham Grammar School for Boys are the first national champions of the Knight-Stokes Cup, beating John Hampden Grammar in the final at Lord's.
Sport
Bowdon Hockey's New Pitch: £51,000 Raised, Opening 26 Sept
Bowdon Hockey Club's new pitch is open after more than £51,000 in donations from at least 160 families, with an official opening on Saturday 26 September.
Planning
Kellogg's Trafford Park Site: 45,000 sqm of Jobs, Not Homes
Trafford's Local Plan allocates the 11.9-hectare Kellogg's site for 45,000 sqm of employment floorspace and rules housing out. Comments close on 18 September.
Community
Partington Cash Hub Opens: 9am-5pm Weekdays in the Library
Partington's new cash hub takes deposits, withdrawals and bill payments Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, in the library on Central Road. It opened on 9 September.
Roads
Trafford Potholes: £4.99m and the Five Roads Named
Trafford is due £4.992m of the Mayor's £60m pothole fund. Patching starts this month, resurfacing waits for spring, and five roads are named.
Business
Minimum Wage Naming: Hale Firm Owed 15 Workers £787.84
Round 24 of the government's naming scheme lists one Trafford employer: a Hale cleaning contractor recorded as owing 15 workers £787.84 since 2019.
Business
Altrincham Retail Park Sold to US Investor Hines
Altrincham Retail Park, George Richards Way, Broadheath WA14 5GR: every shop unit by unit, the new owner Hines, and two occupier lists that do not match.
Planning
Carrington Relief Road: Committee Date Set for 15 October
Trafford's biggest road scheme goes before councillors on 15 October. Fresh environmental evidence has reopened consultation, and comments close on 17 September.
Business
Pavilion Hale Café Firm Moves to Liquidation, Library Open
The company running the café at Hale's Pavilion has called a creditors' meeting to appoint a liquidator. Hale Library, in the same building, is open as normal.
Hale
Altrincham Mosque Open Day: Grove Lane, Hale, 19 September
Altrincham Muslim Association opens its Grove Lane doors on Saturday 19 September, 3pm to 5pm: look round, meet members, ask questions. Free, everyone welcome.
Altrincham
Foundation Altrincham: £2.5m Plan to Add 14,215 sq ft
Bruntwood and Trafford Council want 14,215 sq ft of offices above the Stamford Quarter shops. Foundation is full, and the plans are not on the register yet.
Altrincham
Altrincham Street Party: Stamford Square, Held 29 August
The Stamford Quarter summer street party ran 12pm to 6pm on Saturday 29 August, with DJs, live music, a crafts table, garden games and pop-up food traders.
House prices
Trafford House Prices Hit Record £396,811, Up 9.7%
Trafford's average home hit a record £396,811 in June, up 9.7% in a year: joint 9th fastest of 295 English districts, and the quickest in Greater Manchester.
Longford Park
Longford Park £6m Works Begin: What Closes and When
Pets' Corner, both play areas and the basketball courts each close in turn as Longford Park's £6m rebuild starts. The council's programme runs to July 2027.
Planning
Pelican Inn Site: Owners Given Six Months to Fix or Clear
Trafford Council has given the derelict Altrincham North Lodge six months to be repaired or cleared, four years after an appeal blocked demolition.
Heritage
Bowdon Blue Plaque Honours 'The Climbing Boys' Friend'
William Wood campaigned against child chimney sweeping from 1826 until his death. A blue plaque is now up at his Bowdon home, Willow Cottage, 28 Stamford Road.
Planning
Trafford Local Plan: comment by 18 Sept on 373 local homes
The final consultation on Trafford's Local Plan closes at 23:59 on 18 September. Five town-centre sites in Altrincham and Sale are allocated for 373 homes, with 45% affordable in the south.
Council
Trafford adult social care rated Requires Improvement by CQC
CQC scored Trafford's adult social care 56%, with 7 of 9 quality statements showing shortfalls. 455 people were waiting for occupational therapy in December, median wait 21.5 weeks.
Schools
A-level results 2026: Altrincham grammars double England
AGSB's 31% A* is a school record and AGGS hit 70% A*-A, against 28.3% across England. Loreto sent seven to Oxbridge. The local scoreboard, school by school.
Schools
Loreto Prep site bought for 300 more Altrincham places
Trafford has bought the former Loreto Prep on Dunham Road so North Cestrian can grow. The school already teaches 799 pupils in a building rated for 755.
Planning
Wharfside masterplan: three drop-ins left before 22 Sept
Trafford's 15-year Wharfside plan is open for comment until 22 September, with drop-ins at Gorse Hill on 9 September and Stretford Metros on 15 September.
Business
Harvey Homes Group of Bowdon in administration since July
Administrators were appointed to the Bowdon-registered housebuilder on 16 July, the Gazette records. What it means for creditors, buyers and subcontractors.