Budding young film makers capture pensioners views of Rochdale

Date published: 28/02/2006

A group of young film makers from Rochdale have been interviewing OAP's at a social club about changes to the area.

The 'Who We Are' project is being funded by the Oldham Rochdale Housing Market Renewal Pathfinder which is investing millions of pounds to transform areas of Rochdale. The team of ten youngsters from Belfield, Wardleworth and Hamer, meet every week at Meadowfields Community Centre.  They are creating a 15 minute film which will be shown next month at Touchstones Gallery.

Alison Cooper, the community officer leading the project for the Housing Market Renewal Pathfinder, said: “The children have enjoyed interviewing an older generation and getting their perspective on how much Rochdale’s streets and houses have changed over the years. There is a lot of positive work taking place to regenerate Rochdale and the children have been capturing this metamorphosis.”

The youngsters learned how clothes were cleaned before the invention of washing machines and heard stories about rag and bone men.

Elsie Preston, 86, who goes to a weekly social club at Meadowfields Centre, has lived in Hamer all of her life and spent 83 years living on Dover Street until three years ago.  She said: “It has been wonderful to talk to the children and reminisce about growing up in Rochdale.  We’ve been speaking about shops and how much sweets used to cost. Dover Street was very sociable back in those days.  Everybody knew everybody and there was a lot of pride in the area, but it changed over the years.”

The Oldham Rochdale Pathfinder is investing millions of pounds to improve East Central Rochdale which is made up of the six communities of Belshill, Cloverhall, Hamer, Mayfield, Town Head and Wardleworth.  The Pathfinder aims to create a better choice of housing coupled with a safer environment.  It also funds community projects that help to bring people together.