Property Compulsory Purchase / Compensation

Over the last twenty years, there have been relatively few compulsory purchase orders in comparison to previous years and the skills of the Local Authorities in organising these have largely been lost. With Local Authorities now wishing to assist more in providing large-scale sites for private sector development in Manchester. Currently, there is greater activity and this is augmented in the Midlands and North of England by the Housing Market Renewal Programme where large-scale demolition is likely to take place in Manchester, mostly of older Victorian terraced houses. This may not reach the scale of the 1960s, but it will certainly be much greater than anything seen since then.

We continue to give advice to clients on land compensation issues which may be related to Compulsory Purchase Orders or to other matters. We have considerable experience in dealing with the Highways Agency where road schemes are proposed and implemented and have been able to obtain very good levels of compensation for our clients in Greater Manchester. In this regard, we have a specialisation in golf courses which can often be fundamentally affected by long term proposals. In several recent cases, we have been able to turn what looked to be a potentially very damaging scheme into something which assisted the golf club in regenerating both its course and its club-house, so that matters at the end of the scheme were much improved for the Manchester golf club.

We also act for Government agencies in Manchester in providing advice, organising and negotiating compensation where schemes, for example, flood alleviation proposals, affect communities in Manchester. In this regard, we have established a skilled approach which includes a knowledge of the land compensation statutes, public relations and the need for pro-active community involvement throughout Greater Manchester.