Oldham business village takes 'massive' step forward

Salmon Fields Business Village in Royton opened in 2007 and has been the home for several businesses and branches during that time, however the internet quality was very low as a fibre network had not been installed.

This was much to the frustration of Luke Vernon, director at VSM Marketing which operates from the business village, who said back in March that it was "like living in a backward country".

READ MORE: Businesses packing up and leaving Oldham business village

However, after the long wait and many efforts made by Mr Vernon, the fibre network has now been installed at Salmon Fields.

Mr Vernon said: "We kept banging the drum and eventually Openreach arrived to install it.

"It's the number one requirement for all companies so it's absolutely massive.

Luke Vernon spent years trying to improve the internet at the business village (Image: VSM Marketing)

"It's all about time - if you can do everything from a technology point of view 10 times faster, all of a sudden it's timesaving and cost saving."

Some of the units at the business village, which was developed using funding from the EU, were occupied by companies such as real estate agents Ryder and Dutton, Swedish bank Handelsbanken, and a Vitality franchise.

However, these businesses left the village, which Mr Vernon believes was partly due to the internet issues at Salmon Fields.

Salmon Fields Business Village (Image: Google Maps)

But now, there is optimism that the new fibre network can attract businesses to move in to the village.

Mr Vernon said: "We need businesses in Oldham, so hopefully this will bring companies in to the area."

All of the units are being managed by commercial property estate agents Breakey & Nuttall, who are based at Salmon Fields, who can be contacted on 0161 660 3101.