These articles were written by students taking part in Community News Reporting.
The following article is from a pupil at St Anne's Academy School.
From March 2026, efforts to reinstate the express 167 bus service connecting Heywood to Manchester are being made by the local council.
Elsie Blundell, MP for Heywood and Middleton North, in a Facebook post on her official page wrote: “I'm not giving up on getting the 167 express bus reinstated.”
However, for Middleton, most infrastructure and transport development plans are moving slowly, with the Metrolink extension being part of the 20+ year vision of the Northern Gateway Transport Framework.
At present, there are no significant plans to improve the reliability of key bus services running through Middleton.
Elsie Blundell has previously also said, when responding to the funds from the government for a Metrolink extension in Heywood: “Since I was elected, I have worked hard to make the case for more transport investment in our area.”
Yet Middleton residents still feel frustration at not seeing much improvement to the bus services they rely on to get around every day.
Residents are tired of promises without any action, given claims by the Labour Party in Middleton of having secured the creation of a ground breaking Middleton Mayoral Development Corporation for the town centre.
Improvements would bring huge investment, much needed regeneration, better public transport connectivity and movement towards getting Metrolink connections.
“Seeing is believing,” a local responded on Facebook. Another said: “This feels like fake news to us living in Middleton.” One other local said it’s “time to get a move on.”
Another core issue of transportation in Middleton is the lack of tram services and poor access to rail which forces local people to rely heavily on bus services such as the 163, the 17 and the 415. All three bus services have been experiencing frequent disruptions, delays of up to half an hour and cancellations without warning.
Fortunately, after years of promises, the long awaited plan for trams in Heywood is starting to unfold.
Short and medium-term goals envisage a tram-train line from Rochdale to Manchester via Bury and Heywood. This could be revolutionary for Heywood, after a period of decline and a lack of investment, positively impacting residents by allowing them to get to Manchester via a quick, reliable service.
Many residents feel that a Metrolink extension is long overdue, finding it dispiriting that towns such as Sale and Altrincham have received significant transport upgrades including tram-train lines connecting them to other areas in Greater Manchester while Middleton has only received promises of a similar Rapid Transit service.
This is a hindrance for commuters wanting to reach more jobs. Improved transport networks could make Middleton more important to surrounding towns.
The Northern Gateway Transport Framework is a vision-led improvement plan for the development of transport, infrastructure and services. The aim is to create better connectivity and enable sustainable growth.
Organisations such as Rochdale Borough Council, Bury Council and Transport for Greater Manchester are taking part.
The following article is from a pupil at Irlam and Cadishead Academy School
An exciting new club is coming to Irlam and Cadishead Academy (ICA) next term. Mr Walmsley’s Novel Writing Club, for young writers, will take place on Wednesday lunchtimes.
The club will help students plan their own novels or novellas in full. People will be encouraged to let their imagination run wild with ideas and to showcase their impressive writing skills.
According to Mr Walmsley: “This club is a special opportunity for people who want to be an author or anything to do with literature. We will be making book covers, creating stories, competing against other schools and much more!”
Two interested students, Esmae and Ellie said: “I really want to join the club because I find pleasure in writing and it’s one of my passions. Another reason I want to join is because my favourite teacher is running it!”
Because the club is so new, there are no requirements meaning anyone can join at any time.
The Novel Writing Club aims to give students the opportunity to be more creative and accepting towards others by bringing everyone together with words.
The following article is from pupils at Riverside School Barking
Local authorities and environmental groups have spoken out to reassure residents that the Rainham Volcano is not a real volcano, despite many residents saying they saw fire coming up from Launders Lane.
They are in fact spontaneous fires at an illegal dump site, Arnolds Field, which have impacted both people’s mental and physical health over the years.
Dubbed as ‘Rainham Volcano’, the site has caught fire over 100 times since 2019.
Environmental campaigners from Clear Air in Havering have criticised authorities for not doing enough to tackle the fires and toxic smoke and have pushed for stronger action to protect local air quality and health.
Even though local authorities have repeatedly sent fire engines to help, critics argue that prevention is always better than a response that wastes taxpayer money.
London Borough of Havering Council has declared the site officially contaminated land, a move that legally obliges them to push for a clean-up and stop harmful pollution, something they could not do before.
The authorities have also commissioned air quality monitoring. The council has sprayed sealant to reduce fires by cutting off oxygen. However, it is important to remember this is not a permanent solution.
In 2023, a thermal imaging drone identified a patch of ground at the site which was 176.4 degrees celcius, and an 11 year old boy who previously fell into the area in 2011 suffered third-degree burns.
