The first signs of the transformation coming to Piccadilly Gardens will be evident this week (week commencing 9 March) as hoardings begin to go up on part of the space.
A wide-ranging package of improvements was announced in the autumn to enhance both the appearance of the prominent city centre space and people’s experience of it. The vision behind it - to make Piccadilly Gardens more colourful, more vibrant, safer and more inviting - was illustrated in indicative images released by the Council.
From Monday, around half of the Gardens – centring on the area around the fountains – will begin to be hoarded off to enable preliminary works including surveys and excavations. The remainder of the Gardens will remain open while these are carried out.
The scope of the project includes:
- Putting the ‘Gardens’ back inPiccadilly Gardens – more trees, planting and floral displays.
- A new space for family-friendly events - removing the old, unreliable fountains and using the new space created to hold enjoyable events and activities throughout the year. A new, flexible structure will be built on part of the space to help support events.
- Better use of space -Ripping out the unsightly low concrete wall and raised planters along the edge of Piccadilly Gardens, close to the Queen Victoria statue.
- Refreshing the existing children’s play area - transforming the space created by the removal of the wall and raised planters and creating a new playground for younger children. This will be of the same high quality as recently-created new play areas such as those at Mayfield Park and Ancoats Green but designed specifically to suit Piccadilly Gardens.
The Council is in the process of selecting a contractor and delivery team for the works and will announce who has been appointed in the coming weeks.
Improvements to the appearance and functionality of the space are being complemented by a range of other multi-agency initiatives to help restore pride and confidence in Piccadilly Gardens.
These include a strengthened police presence through GMP’s dedicated neighbourhood policing team, set up to tackle issues and concerns in Piccadilly Gardens, and planned improvements to CCTV.
Once the work is completed, the Council aims to ensure a regular stream of bespoke family-friendly events, building on the success of popular events held in Piccadilly Gardens such as last summer’s MCR Live 25 celebration to create a year-round programme of events.
Beyond this immediate plan, the Council has been working with partners on exciting next steps for Piccadilly Gardens and the wider area in the coming years including a multi-million pound investment by Transport for Greater Manchester to create a new, modern transport interchange.
Council Leader Cllr Bev Craig said: “2026 promises to be the beginning of a bright new start for Piccadilly Gardens. We’re determined to see it become an attractive world-class public space which makes a positive contribution to the city centre – somewhere Mancunians can be proud of again. That’s what we’re cracking on with investing in.
“We recognise that the success of this project doesn’t just rest on making the Piccadilly Gardens look better but also on improving people’s experience of the space – whether that’s through tackling crime and anti-social behaviour or putting on exciting events and activities.
“While there’s a lot we can do as a council, and we’re getting on with doing it, we can’t transform Piccadilly Gardens on our own and I’m grateful for the strong commitment to ongoing improvements which GMP, Transport for Greater Manchester and other agencies have also shown.”
Turf from the hoarded off section of Piccadilly Gardens, which was laid at the beginning of the year, is being donated to community projects.