'As soon as it gets dark, that's when it all starts': Life on the estate where outsiders are banned

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

Fear is in the air on a troubled Rochdale estate where drastic measures have been taken. Police yesterday (November 4) announced they were shutting down the entire Freehold estate, banning anyone other than residents from accessing the 19 blocks of flats in an extraordinary measure.

The closure order, in place for three months, comes amidst a litany of reports of crime rocking the area, with drug dealing rife and residents having to walk past people ‘doing their business in the stairwells’. READ MORE: 'At night-time it's just wild.

All the crackheads come out' The estate came to national prominence last year as the scene of an unthinkable tragedy when two-year-old Awaab Ishak died in one of its flats following prolonged exposure to mould.

But since then, crime has surged with a targeted GMP operation, Operation Affect, shutting down drug dens and arresting dozens of suspects.