It's a sunny morning and Stockport town centre is buzzing.

Tables and chairs outside the cafes are filling up, with Stopfordians basking in the June heat in the trendy Underbanks and beyond.

A steady stream of visitors are coming and going from the transport interchange, while others cool down in the recently-opened Viaduct Park.

The story of Stockport town centre's revival has been remarkable.

It was once a place not too long ago which locals avoided, instead preferring to head into Manchester city centre to grab a bite to eat or post-work pint.

But a massive regeneration plan has completely turned its fortunes around. Stockport is now a place which wins national accolades as one of the best corners of the north to live.

It's a town where people can find jobs, and enjoy a growing number of coffee shops, bars, and eateries.

Much of that success can be traced back to a moment in 2019, with the setting up of the Stockport Town Centre Mayoral Development Corporation (MDC).

An MDC is essentially a regeneration partnership between local leaders in Stockport and the Greater Manchester mayor, Andy Burnham at the time.

It aims to bring about positive change and drive investment into an area.

The MDC model was first used in London, but Greater Manchester has latched on to the method and is putting it to good use in Stockport and beyond.

Looking around Stockport town centre, the changes are clear to see. The town centre has gained a new transport interchange, apartments, and Stockport Exchange, Stockport's own business district next to the train station.

More residents living in the town centre has boosted the local economy, pouring money into shops and businesses.

It has reversed the cycle of decline that has struck so many high streets and towns across the country.

The Stockport MDC was the first to be set up in Greater Manchester, and it is also the first to be expanded.

In February, Parliament agreed to double the regeneration boundary in Stockport, so it now includes the whole of the town centre area.

That means there will be 8,000 homes built in Stockport in the coming years, as well as new places for food and drink.

There are now several mayoral development corporations and zones in Greater Manchester trying to replicate Stockport's success, including in Bolton town centre, Oldham, Atom Valley, Middleton, the Ashton to Stalybridge corridor, Leigh, and of course Old Trafford and the Western Gateway spanning Salford and Trafford.

With Andy Burnham now back in Parliament as Makerfield MP and likely to be the country's next Prime Minister, the current Greater Manchester MDC model of regeneration may become the foundation for change which is rolled out elsewhere.

The former mayor of Greater Manchester had his fingerprints across much of what has happened in Stockport in recent years, and made a point of appearing alongside Lib Dem councillors in the town to celebrate key milestones.

Mr Burnham spoke to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) in March 2024 at the opening of Stockport transport interchange.

He said at the time: "I've not stopped smiling since I got here. From a transport point of view it's a huge lift, but look at the park as well, open space, green space, amazing new developments – this is a vision of the future.

"I think this is how you bring new life to a proud English town like Stockport."

The transport interchange is also the centre of Stockport's next big move, to get trams rolling into the town centre.

While talk of Andy Burnham's achievements as mayor of Greater Manchester are often lauded as bringing bus back under local control, caps on bus fares, and the ever-changing Manchester skyline, have mayoral development corporations been one of his biggest successes?

"Stockport has changed dramatically over the last five or ten years," says Mark Roberts, the Lib Dem council leader at Stockport town hall.

"You can see as you come through Stockport the dramatic changes that we've got here, the good growth that's being delivered with our communities, and being delivered together in a cross-party way."

On the role of the MDC, Councillor Roberts believes the scheme has put 'rocket boosters' under the regeneration of the town.

"Stockport is a great example of an MDC that has worked really well, it's because we have a mature approach to doing our politics here, and the mayor to be fair to him has absolutely embraced that approach.

"He is a rare beast within the Labour Party, he's someone who can hear views from other people, and I think that's a positive I would point to what the mayor has brought to the partnership here.

"But also that profile, he's been happy to stand on a stage with me championing Stockport just as much as he would for anybody else, and that's credit to him.

"He was always somebody who could hear an alternative view, and understand why there might be an alternative view to something."

"There is an opportunity for Andy to bring that approach to Westminster, and he's been a friend of Stockport, I expect him to keep being a friend of Stockport, and I hope that he doesn't become a stranger when he gets used to the Big Smoke down south."

Businesses in Stockport say they are feeling the effects of the work that has gone on to improve the town centre.

"There have been a lot of new people coming to Stockport," says Luis Sanjuan, 31, owner of Cafe Sanjuan in the town centre.

Luis set his businesses up in Stockport five years ago, and he says it has been an ideal place to be.

"There have been a lot of new businesses that have brought a different demographic, not just from around Manchester, but from other places in England.

"It's good, it's nice to see a big diversity."

Asked about how the vibe in Stockport has changed, Luis jokes that there are more people from London coming to the town now than before.

He says with a smile: "It's nice, a lot of people think it's not good that southerners are coming up here.

"I'm from the north of Columbia, and I prefer to say in the north of every country that I've lived in.

"Some people think it's rising prices, but if more people live here then prices are going to get higher, regardless of who they are."

Asked why he came to Stockport and not Manchester, Luis added: "Stockport found me.

"Six years ago, Stockport Homes helped my families buy a home, and a year later my dad and I were walking on the main street and we saw a sign that this place was for sale.

"The future of Stockport is positive, 100 per cent."

On the Underbanks, Amy Bills, 33, is one of those who moved to Stockport from London.

She said: "I moved here a few years ago, and it's definitely changed in the last year.

"I really like the Underbanks, there's a lot of cool bars, I come out here a lot with my friends. It's nice, there's a good vibe.

"In the summer there's a lot of outdoor seating, it's a nice community, very chill.

"If you want somewhere that's away from the city and not as hectic as Manchester then Stockport is perfect, it's in between a little town and a big city.

"It's got a good crowd of people, and a lot of creative people too.

"There's been a tonne of redevelopment and regeneration, a lot of new apartments that have opened near the train station."

Stockport has faced its own challenges too though.

Last year, Sky announced plans to close its call centre in Stockport, a decision which put hundreds of jobs at risk.

Workers at the centre told the Local Democracy Reporting Service at the time that they were 'struggling to sleep' due to fears for their future.

Tim Arthington, 53, was one of the former staff members who was let go, and he is still looking for work.

Asked about how Stockport has changed recently, he said: "It's been better than it has been, say five or six years ago.

"I lived here when Stockport market would take over all these streets, all the way past the pub, it was massive, and over the years it has died, and no one really wanted to come to Stockport, but they've rejuvenated the area, and it's a lot better than it was."

As for the issues the town is facing, Tim said there is an issue with homelessness, and people struggling for housing.

He said Stockport is 'good' for food and drinks, but added that it can be 'very expensive' in some areas.

The regeneration work in Stockport is continuing to move forward, with big plans in the pipeline.

That includes an overhaul of Mersey Square for 'the first time in generations' to make it feel welcoming both day and night.

And based around Piccadilly, Hillgate, and the River Mersey, three new neighbourhoods are planned in the east of Stockport town centre, with a total of 4,000 new homes.

A blueprint for this part of the town centre aims to build a new riverside community with a public park, with plans to 'open up' the water for future residents and visitors.

In March, Lord Gavin Barwell was appointed as the new chair of Stockport Mayoral Development Corporation.

He will play a role in leading the borough into the future.

He told the LDRS: "There were some really specific things about Stockport and Greater Manchester that really appealed.

"You take Stockport, when they approached me to see if I was interested, I had a three or four hour tour of the town centre, and what impressed me was one they have a real record of achievement already, this is not like a new thing that I'm launching, it's something that has been there for seven years, and you can actually see as you go around the town centre what it has delivered.

"It's one of the most impressive urban regeneration schemes in the country.

"But then there's also a real ambition to take it further. The footprint of the MDC has just significantly expanded, now encompassing the whole of the town centre.

"If you look at the draft business plan that I've inherited, there's an ambition not just to get more homes built and more employment space, but also critically to get new social infrastructure there.

"So the Metrolink extension, a new school, new health facilities, so I think there's a really exciting vision for urban regeneration there, which is we can pull it off is going to make this place one of the trailblazers around the whole country."