Planning permission has been granted for a memorial garden to remember the 22 victims who lost their lives in the Manchester terror attack.
The memorial garden, known as The Glade of Light, will provide a space for ‘remembrance and reflection’ for the families whose loved ones died on May 22, 2017.
Construction work is due to start at the beginning of March and should be complete in November this year.
Sir Richard Leese, Leader of Manchester City Council, said: “This memorial at the heart of our city promises to be a beautiful tribute to those whose lives were so cruelly cut short.
“Their memories will endure and Manchester will never forget them.
“The Glade of Light will become part of the fabric of our city, a calm and peaceful place which will blend seamlessly with the regeneration of the wider Medieval Quarter in which it sits.”
Located at the foot of Fennel Street, the centrepiece of the memorial will have a white stone ‘halo’ engraved with the names of the deceased set in bronze.
Underneath their inscription will be a personalised memory capsule containing memories and mementos to be provided by their loved ones held within the stone.
This year marks the four year anniversary of the Manchester bombing in which Salman Abedi detonated a home-made device at the Ariana Grande concert which injured more than 800 victims in addition to the 22 killed.
Designers BCA Landscape and Smiling Wolf created the memorial to naturally maximise light in the space which is surrounded by a colourful planting scheme with plants which grow naturally in the UK to reflect the changing seasons all year round.
Joanne Roney OBE, Chief Executive of Manchester City Council described the planning process as a “long and meticulous journey” which took almost four years to be approve.
She said: “We made a solemn commitment to honour the 22 people who were killed in that heinous attack and it was important that we took great care to deliver something moving and appropriate.”
