Furious residents hold protest against controversial new homes plan

Furious residents staged a protest against plans to demolish a former church and use the land to build flats.

Developer The Heaton Group wants to bulldoze St Peter’s Church and vicarage in Bryn and replace it with 28 one-bedroom apartments, which it said would provide temporary supported accommodation to support people and families who are hit by homelessness.

But worried locals fear the Bryn Road site would be utilised as a “halfway house for drug addicts.”

They have also said Bryn and Ashton have no police station or visible police presence and questioned how the areas can cope with an upsurge in anti-social behaviour which they feel would come from the development.

The strength of opposition to the plans culminated in a protest today which attracted a crowd of around 400 people, some of whom were holding up placards urging Wigan Council to say no to the development.

Bryn councillor Steve Jones, who attended the protest outside the church and Bryn Rec car park, said: “The event was fantastic.

“There was around 400 people who attended and a resident donated a cherry picker which I used to get up and do a short speech. He also provided a PA system.

“Then you had residents holding up placards urging the council to say no the development.

“We want to give the message to the council that we don’t want this development and that if it is pushed through this is a sign of things to come.”

Coun Jones said that further protests would take place if necessary.

He said: “To get 400 people attending after the protest was only advertised on Facebook a few days ago is a fantastic effort. We will plan further protests if we have to and by then we’re hoping restrictions will have eased further.”

Coun Jones will meet with the council bosses on the site later this week.