MMU Didsbury


The forthcoming closure of the MMU Campus in Manchester's leafy suburb of Didsbury is probably seen by most as a good thing, with the building of new executive detached homes on the site. Whist it will probably ultimately be good for house prices and the local economy, there is a part of me that'll be quite sad to see the students leave.

In my opinion, one of the better things about Didsbury is that it's generally a melting pot of educated professional people at various different stages of their careers; and the absence of the significant student population will mean some of the younger residents no longer come here, and in the longer term could this mean that less of them will be aware of Didsbury and want to move back here as their careers progress?

No doubt West Didsbury will remain a trendy suburb for many years to come, but I do think there is a place for the great unwashed (sorry students!) in our leafy suburb – whether you like it or not – so it'll be interesting to see what changes it makes to the demographics over the coming years.

There's to be a public consultation on the plans this autumn, with the council and university tabling proposals for surplus asset sites. We understand the proposal is currently for executive homes and a new school.