Just a sideways thought, have you considered Flintshire Flying School at Hawarden (Chester)? Straight down the M56 from Manchester, no problem.
Great little school, three PA-38's for training, good availability, good bunch of instructors (but I may be biased as I finished off my PPL there years ago and now instruct there part-time!)
Hawarden is an excellent airfield to train at. No messing about with zone transits, straight into the local flying area immediately on leaving the ATZ. The opening hours are being extended too in the new year which will help. Have a look at the website for details.