Oldham has unveiled a new micro-park at the gateway to its town centre, replacing a narrow, flood-prone alley beside the former Snipe Inn with a landscaped plaza designed to greet bus passengers with “a vibrant and welcoming” first impression.

Snipe Garden, which opened to the public on Monday, 30 June, occupies the footprint of the 130-year-old pub demolished in summer 2024 after standing empty since 2022. A slaloming path now winds through rock gardens, fresh planting and timber benches where shoppers can pause or meet friends, transforming what locals once dismissed as “a silly small gap” into a communal green space.

Council leader Arooj Shah cut the ribbon at the Fountain Street entrance, funded entirely by United Utilities and project partners at no cost to the council. “For many visitors, this is one of the first places they see when they get off the bus, so it’s vital the entrance to the town centre feels open and welcoming to all,” she said. “Snipe Gardens is more than just a green space, it’s about improving the town centre for everyone who lives, works, studies or visits here.”

While resident David Barker welcomed the upgrade as “certainly more welcome than the tiny alley that used to be there”, others admitted they “missed the pub” and voiced concerns about possible litter. The garden takes its name both from the lost inn and nearby Snipe Clough, and forms the first visible element of a wider “linear park” planned to thread green corridors through Oldham’s most densely populated streets ahead of regeneration schemes set to deliver almost 2,000 new town-centre homes.

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