Spotlight on Ashton-Under-Lyne

WHERE: Seven miles east of Manchester and set in the foothills of the Pennines, it offers a unique blend of town and country. Nestled between the Medlock valley and the Huddersfield Narrow Canal there's a network of footpaths and bridleways as well as parks and golf courses to enjoy. It is now the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside.

WHY: The whole area has been given a boost with the arrival of the missing link of the M60. The motorway has opened up a new business corridor in east Manchester and business developments are piling in. The main site is at Ashton Moss, where work has begun on a £100m scheme including a leisure and entertainment complex, a 150-bed hotel and conference centre.

Already in the town centre, standing alongside one of the oldest and largest markets in the North West is the £30 million Arcades Shopping Centre and the recently refurbished Ladysmith Centre - home to stores such as Marks and Spencer, Top Shop, Next, WH Smith and Boots.

WHAT DO YOU GET FOR YOUR MONEY? 
There are some new developments going up at the moment as builder's become aware of the regeneration projects and efforts that are being made in the area. An immaculate three-bedroom semi situated on a small select development with solid oak flooring throughout downstairs, dining room, fully-fitted kitchen, three bedrooms, family bathroom and en-suite and an enclosed two tiered rear garden is up for £145,000.

WHO: Suitable for people needing easy access to Manchester. Often people that find the surrounding areas such as Stalybridge, Glossop and Upper Mill are beyond their budget and turn to Ashton as an alternative.

TRANSPORT: Located two-minutes from junction 23 of the M60 motorway, Ashton-Under-Lyne has good transport links into the city and beyond. It is situated on the main line between Manchester, Huddersfield and Leeds with regular trains operating on the 10-minute route to Manchester Victoria. There's also a large bus station which long distance express coaches call at and Manchester Airport is about 15 miles away.

Transport routes should be further improved under plans for an extension of the Metrolink tram system into Ashton.

AGENT'S VIEW: "Ashton-under-Lyne is very much a mixed bag. There's the working class terraced housing typical of a Lancashire industrial town alongside 18th century farmhouses that are well out of first time buyers' reach," says Mike Butterworth from Cordingleys.

"There are a lot of hot spots and cold spots. The town has got busier since the opening of the M60 but I think it's the Metrolink which will enhance the town even further."

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