Tameside Wellness Centre, Denton, Greater Manchester. Archaeological Evaluation and Excavation Report.

Oxford Archaeology (OA) North were commissioned by The Environment Partnership Ltd (TEP) to undertake a trial trench evaluation of the proposed development of Tameside Wellness Centre, Denton, Greater Manchester (NGR SJ 9256 9566). The evaluation fieldwork, comprising six trenches, was carried out between 29th October and 2nd November 2018. The evaluation was rapidly followed by excavation of three parts of the site, with the fieldwork being undertaken between 8th and 21st November 2018.
The evaluation trenching aimed to establish the state of preservation of archaeological remains of interest within the Proposed Development Area (PDA) and, therefore, informed both the need for, and scope of, the subsequent excavation. The evaluation confirmed the presence of structural
remains relating to the former hat factory and terrace housing, with floor surfaces and walls being identified in Trenches 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. There was no archaeology identified in Trench 6, suggesting that the structures identified on the historic mapping had been truncated.
As significant structural remains were identified during the evaluation, a mitigation strategy was put in place which involved the exposure and recording of the remains of the hat factory and two of the terrace houses, to mitigate their loss or damage during subsequent development of the PDA. The
excavation revealed that the structures on the site were fairly well preserved throughout the PDA. These structures also correlated well with the historic mapping and documentary evidence.