Blackley lies about 3 miles north of Manchester city centre. The name [pronounced Blake-ley] means “a clearing in a dark wood" and the original hamlet is mentioned in the Domesday Book. The dense woodland was occupied with deer and wolves and was a very popular hunting area.

In the 17th century, Huguenots (French protestants fleeing persecution) arrived in the area, bringing their linen weaving skills.

The building of Heaton Park in 1772 involved the use of 640 acres but the area stayed rural until the early 20th century with a solitary corn water mill on the river Irk.

In the 1930's the area became an overspill estate for Manchester but Boggart (ghost or evil spirit) Hole Clough has survived as an area of green land. Heaton Park also remains and is incorporated into the City of Manchester as its largest park.