Residents angry at “disgusting” state of Syke Pond

Photo: Dave Hughes

Syke Pond

Residents of Syke have expressed their anger at the “disgusting” state of Syke pond, and are calling on the council to fix the problem.

Dave Hughes, from Newark Road, said that his three young children are banned from going there because it has become an unkempt “mud bath”, and says that little is being done to address the issue.

Mr Hughes explained how the once local attraction has become “no place for children” and is hoping that action will be taken to restore it back to its former glory.

He said: “It has been so neglected that you can’t even see the grass. The part that collapsed is one thing, but the rest is just a mud bath.

“The other thing is there are way too many geese, and there’s an overspill into the road. It’s really over populated now, it makes you wonder if there’s any fish left in the water. More to the point, the place is in a desperate state and something needs to be done.

“The people that live here aren’t happy about it at all, and nobody has seen anyone around there sorting it out, I don’t know if the council is planning on dealing with it at all. It appears not.”

Fellow resident Andrew Aykroyd, from Healey, said that he had used the pond from being five-years-old, and used to take his son there to play with model power boats. Now, he says, it is simply impossible to go anywhere near the pond. He said: “I used to go up there to test my model power boat but with the big metal frame in there now it looks like I'll have to find an alternative pond. I want to go up there with my son but it’s not possible now.”

Mark Widdup, Director of Neighbourhoods at Rochdale Borough Council, said that the problem is not going unnoticed. He said: “We have investigated the problems at Syke Pond and are looking at how we can make the repairs that are needed, including how the work will be funded. The footpaths have been affected by the failure of an old drainage system.”