Past and Present

The illustration of Ryebank Fields is used with the kind permission of local artist Anna Violet © 

Ryebank Fields has played a significant role in the social and cultural heritage of the area for many years with the local community acting as custodians of the land: trimming back trees; maintaining footpaths and litter picking.

The land has evolved into a diverse tapestry of natural habitats, lovingly cared for by the community. This rewilded local green space is open to everyone and serves as a cherished asset for locals. With over 1,400 trees, the fields support a vibrant population of birds, bats, mammals, and pollinators. The fields also function as a vital carbon sink and natural floodplain, helping to mitigate air pollution and flooding in this densely populated urban area.

The fields are a valuable community resource, they are used for numerous community events and individual pastimes such as themed guided walks, singing, painting, trails, honouring festivals, dog walking, cycling, bird watching, star gazing, photography and being in nature.

The site was used as claypits by the Jacksons Brickworks Company until 1949. After the brickworks closed the claypits were used as an unregistered landfill tip until the site was purchased with public money by MCC in 1966. Extensive remediation works were completed in 1972 which capped the landfill tip areas, levelled the surface and created playing fields. The works were funded by the central government environmental assistance scheme Operation Eyesore. 

Ryebank Fields was gifted by Manchester City Council to Manchester Polytechnic, now Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU), for educational use as a sports facility. Ownership of the land was formally transferred to MMU in 1992 to comply with the 1988 Education Reform Act, whereby council owned polytechnics were privatised and became universities.

In December 1995 MMU submitted a planning application for the development of 90 houses. The application was rejected in 1996 due to concerns over increased traffic congestion, increased pollution and the loss of open green space. MMU then abandoned the fields when they relocated their sports facilities to Carrington.

In April 2005 MMU made another approach to Manchester City Council with a proposal to develop Ryebank Fields. The council advised they would not support a planning application for the same reasons MMU's previous planning application was refused in 1996. 

The Friends of Ryebank Fields group was formed in 2018 as part of the Save Ryebank Fields campaign.  

In association with with the Chorlton Community Land Trust, Manchester Metropolitan University drafted the Ryebank Road Development Framework, which allocated Ryebank Fields for development. The final version of the development framework was adopted by Manchester City Council in 2019.

https://www.manchester.gov.uk/downloads/download/7074/ryebank_road_development_framework_2019

In April 2020 a proposal for Ryebank Fields to be designated as a Local Green Space was submitted to Manchester City Council. Ryebank Fields meets all the criteria for Local Green Space designation which if granted will provide protection from development. Manchester City Council have never considered the proposal, which is now over five years old. 

Step Places and Southway Housing submitted planning applications in February 2025, for a mixed development of 120 properties on Ryebank Fields.  

This marks the third occasion in thirty years that Manchester Metropolitan University has attempted to sell public land that was gifted to them. Their behaviour indicates a preference for profit over environmental and ecological issues, which contradicts their assertion of being a green and sustainable organisation.

Ryebank Fields remains a well used, much loved and vital community asset and local and wider communities are fighting to save it from development and preserve it for posterity. 

Organisations working for the Save Ryebank Fields campaign include: 

Friends of Ryebank Fields, Ryebank Fields Community Group, Friends of Longford Park, Women of Ryebank Fields, Trafford Ryebank Residents Association and Chorlton Craftivists.