Northern revives former station house to be new one-stop shop for health

The former station house has been transformed by The Greater Manchester Stations Alliance, which includes representation from train operator Northern, Network Rail, Transport for Greater Manchester, regeneration specialist LCR, and Greater Manchester Centre for Voluntary Organisation.   

The station house will be the new home of The Wellbeing Rooms Manchester – a hub that aims to provide low-cost, high-quality therapy and health programmes for the local community.  

The team includes an acupuncturist, nutritionist, reflexologist, and yoga therapist.

They are currently developing a range of programmes to provide an integrated approach to health issues including menopause, fibromyalgia and IBS. 

Director and acupuncturist Annoushka Deighton said: “We are so excited about the restoration of the Station House into a therapy space for The Wellbeing Rooms.  

“We know that many people are unable to access therapies because of cost and we will provide a wide range of therapies at an affordable level. We want to help people with long-term health issues find ways to improve their own health. Our programmes will help people make informed, manageable lifestyle changes to help them live fuller lives." 

Craig Harrop, regional director at Northern said: “At Northern, we want our stations to be more than just places to travel to and from, we want to put our customers at the heart of everything we do.

“This scheme is the perfect example of this, and we’re excited to welcome The Wellbeing Rooms into its new home.”   

Alex Bowker, senior development manager at LCR, said: “Bringing public value to the communities we operate in runs to the heart of everything we do. Our work with The Greater Manchester Stations Alliance provides us a platform to give diverse social enterprises in the North West spaces they can flourish in and develop plans for future success. We’re proud of what we've achieved together to date and look forward to supporting community hubs across the region as they go from strength to strength.” 

Michael Keating, station development manager at TfGM, said: “We are really proud to have worked alongside our alliance partners and The Wellbeing Rooms on delivering this scheme. Bringing disused rail buildings back into use to meet the needs of the local communities they serve is something that we are excited to develop further across Greater Manchester. We continue to look forward to supporting all our community projects now and in the future.” 

Northern is the second largest train operator in the UK, with 2,500 services a day to more than 500 stations across the North of England.