The ‘trendy’ Manchester suburb that could lose people to Didsbury and Withington

Maria White has to raise her voice to be heard above the constant hum of traffic and honking horns on Stockport Road in Levenshulme.

As a lone cyclist weaves between parked cars and traffic, Maria, 44, shares how sad she is that the road feels so dangerous to use.

It’s one of the reasons she and her husband Tim White, 55, are moving to Denmark – Maria’s homeland – in a few weeks.

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The couple live in Levenshulme and have seen it transform into a thriving neighborhood over the years.

The area is one that has become known for its trendy coffee shops, with places like Station South attracting locals and beyond.

But it’s not a place the couple feels they can settle down.

Maria said: “While I lived here it got better but a lot of those places have closed now.

“People might start living here but going to Didsbury or Withington for food, we need more restaurants around.

“Another problem is that nobody wants cyclists here. I want to ride my bike more, but this area doesn’t feel safe for it.

“People here don’t have a great feeling at the moment. It’s something negative passed down from parents to children, you can feel it.”

With the general election approaching, the borough will become part of the newly formed seat of Gorton and Denton.

Maria and Tim said that while the area has improved, some problems have been constant.

“People worry about kids on bikes and teenagers,” says Tim.

“They wear balaclavas and can be intimidating, we see a lot of them. They don’t have much to do, so that’s where they end up.

“I see the police doing things about it, but I just don’t think there are enough of them, everything has been cut.”

Maria chimes in and says the closure of Levenshulme Market has had an impact on the community.

The couple used to visit often and bump into neighbors and friends, but that doesn’t happen anymore.

She said: “It seems the politicians don’t care about the people who live here.

“If they gave businesses a chance to do well, they will, but a lot of them can’t now.”

Across the road, Ali Shah Malik, 40, is a shopkeeper who has been living in the area for the past four years.

He opened his business in Levenshulme recently due to encroachment, but rising rent prices are making it difficult for him to make ends meet.

He is worried that he will soon be pushed out of the area as the landlords keep raising prices.

It’s an issue he says has a big impact on the entire community.

“People really have problems around here, especially students and young people.

“Many people come to me in my shop asking for a job. A boy called me one evening at 11:00 PM, I don’t know how he got my number. He said he had no food.

“He only had 31p in his bank account, he showed me the statements.

“This happens every day, there are a lot of people. Sometimes six or seven people come to ask for a job in a day.”

Mr Malik is a Labor member and plans to vote for the party in the general election.

He brought up the Gaza issue. He believes it will have an impact on the outcome.

“People come here every week protesting against Gaza,” he added. “I think people in the Muslim community are all thinking about Gaza now.

“They’ll have that in mind when they go to the polls.”

Since George Galloway won the Rochdale by-election in February and declared victory “for Gaza”, the issue has taken hold of politics across the country.

Britain’s Labor Party is aiming to win more seats in Parliament on July 4, and Palestinian flags draped around shops on Stockport Road show the issue is important to voters.

Outside Levenshulme Antiques Village, Elaine Brass, 55, walks her dog.

As people pass by, they stop to say hello and pet the dog.

“The people are very nice around here,” says Mrs. Brass.

She is from the area and knows very well which cafes are worth visiting.

But as stopped traffic passes, she says the area needs more spaces for people, rather than vehicles, if it’s going to improve in the future and keep the beautiful places that bring people to the neighborhood.

“I think they could have more car-free zones, a space for pedestrians. He could also do something with the trash.

“There could be more types of stores, some where we can go in and think and buy something there.

“But we’ve got some hip places, we’re very lucky to have them – I just hope they don’t go.”