A great place to live, work and visit, Trafford has it all; from excellent transport links, shopping ranging from the Trafford Centre to unique town centres and markets, plus a huge range of leisure, amenities, parks and open spaces, not to mention, of course, top level sport.
13,000 businesses
in the area
236,000
population
Trafford Centre
Trafford Centre opened in 1998 and is the third largest shopping centre in the UK.
Old Trafford
Old Trafford, home to Manchester United, holds a capacity of 74,879 spectators and is the largest club football stadium in the UK.
Trafford Way
Trafford Way located a stone’s throw from the Trafford Centre hosts excellent attractions and experiences including Chill Factore, iFly Indoor Skydiving, Dino Falls Adventure Golf and various eateries.
Dunham Massey Hall and Gardens
Dunham Massey Hall and Gardens is a green oasis nestled within the Trafford borough; it has seen visitor numbers exceeding 310,000 in recent years.
Imperial War Museum
Trafford is home to the iconic Imperial War Museum North building which continues to be a key visitor attraction enjoyed by many thousands each year.
University Academy 92
UA92 offers a new approach to education, providing a unique experience, game-changing educational curriculum and an exceptional environment.
3.5% unemployment rate
remaining consistently lower than the national average of 3.9%
58.5% recycling rate
best performing district in GM and the highest performing metropolitan district in the country
Living and Working in Trafford
Trafford has distinctive town centres like Altrincham, Sale, Stretford and Urmston with a wide range of and award-winning food & drink, not to mention great transport links around the Borough and across Greater Manchester.
Trafford has a high employment rate of 76.7%, which exceeds both the average GM and North West rates of employment by over 2%.
We are always keen to try out new things such as play streets, which temporarily close residential roads, allowing children to play safely and freely outside of their homes.
We have 13 libraries, accessible throughout the year for staff, visitors and residents.
If you’d like to learn about coming to work for Trafford, you can take a look here.
37 parks
in the borough with eight achieving Green Flag status
Sporting history
Trafford’s international sporting and cultural heritage is second to none. Home to the world famous Old Trafford football stadium and Lancashire County Cricket Club’s Emirates Old Trafford ground, sport has and continues to be a key focus for the Borough.
Trafford Athletics Club, based at Longford Park in the north of the Borough, has been the breeding ground for several athletes who want on to represent the region and country.
With many outstanding parks, recreation and green spaces, popular leisure centres, golf courses and an indoor ‘real snow’ ski slope there is plenty of variety for all to enjoy, as well as events such as the Tour of Britain seeing top-level cyclists and the Manchester Marathon coming through the Borough.
Investment in business
Trafford is known to be an economic powerhouse in Greater Manchester, hosting over 13,000 businesses in the area; Trafford Park, the largest industrial park in Europe, alone hosts 1,330 of them! With prime business locations, unparalleled transport connectivity and host to stunning world class events, there is a lot on offer.
Trafford have secured joint venture contract deals with Stretford Mall and Stamford Quarter, with a £50m deal to set about a massive economic regeneration – these investments alone will set a catalyst in Stretford and will continue to allow Altrincham to thrive, among setting a precedent to seek further opportunities to reinvigorate Trafford.
83 schools
96% Good & Outstanding
OFSTED rated schools and colleges
Education and schools
Trafford schools prove year on year they are among the best, securing some of the country’s best examination results.
Over 96% pupils in ‘Good’ or ‘Outstanding’ schools
Only 2.27% of 16-18 year olds are not in education, employment or training, meaning we are the second best performing Borough in GM.
University Academy 92 (UA92) recently opened its doors to the very first cohort of students. UA92 is university for the future, putting employability at the heart their degrees.
UA92 is a partnership between the Manchester United’s Class of 92, Lancaster University leading industry partners including Microsoft, Lancashire Cricket Club, KPMG, Insight and many more.
Trafford Council is an important partner in the project and we have been working very closely with the UA92 teams for the last couple of years.
Partnership working
Trafford have a strong ethos and commitment to partnership and collaborative working, and have relaunched our Local Strategic Partnership to form the Trafford Together Locality Plan.
The Locality Plan is our plan to improve the physical and mental health of people in Trafford. The plan formation is a single body bringing together organisations from across the public, private, voluntary, faith and community sectors and local residents. Members of the Locality Plan work together to achieve a common vision to ensure Trafford is a place where our residents achieve their aspirations, and our communities are thriving.
For further information about our Locality Plan, please visit: http://www.traffordpartnership.org/locality-working/Docs/Trafford-Together-Locality-Plan.pdf
Corporate Plan
Our Corporate Plan describes Trafford’s vision and priorities for the Borough. At the heart of our vision is a common cause – to make Trafford a better Borough; a place where everyone has opportunity and ample chances to succeed, and a place where everybody has a voice. With this vision in mind, there have been seven priorities identified which will help us as an Authority contribute by way of more joined up service delivery, and support for our residents, service users and partner organisations to equally deliver this vision.
Further information about our Corporate Plan is available at https://www.trafford.gov.uk/about-your-council/strategies-plans-and-policies/docs/Corporate-Plan-2019.pdf.
Modernisation
Trafford Council, like many local authorities, is facing ever-changing demands in the 21st Century. Traditional ways of operating are not necessarily as effective or as relevant as they used to be; there is a need to modernise to meet the new challenges ahead.
As a result of this need, Trafford have launched a programme of Modernisation to review the current infrastructures in place and make progress towards becoming a more digitally enabled and accessible authority. Working with our partner FutureGov, there is work ongoing to agree a framework and develop a roadmap to implement and put flesh onto the required projects – watch this space!
Major developments
There are a number of major developments underway across the Borough both completed and ongoing, including the substantial extension of GMs Metrolink tram network through Trafford Park and on to the Trafford Centre – this extended the Metrolink line by 5.5km and hosts six new stops.
The Trafford Waters Scheme situated on the banks of the Manchester Ship Canal will see 3,000 new homes, a diverse business community, new school, leisure opportunities, attractive green spaces, all within a sustainable urban neighbourhood.
‘Future Carrington’ will provide 7,000 new homes, create around 660 jobs during construction phase and an expected further 14,000 jobs once the site is developed.
Additionally, there are plans to build a £250m tropical spa resort (Therme Spa), billed as the UK’s first ‘wellbeing-resort’ next to the Trafford Centre. The 28 acre site will boast indoor swimming pools, steam rooms and saunas landscaped with plants and trees.
