Staffordshire Moorlands District Council Cabinet has approved plans to introduce nine "permanent units for mixed use" into Leek's Trestle Market, which it will call Leek Market Hall.

This comes as the result of a report on the future of the market, which recommended that the Council create fixed units to be used for food and beverage and retail trade, so supposedly allowing for "additional retail space in the town centre, potentially increasing vacant floor space."

The permanent shop units would be positioned around a central space which could be used for around 12 additional market stalls and/or seating.

The Council says that although this would reduce the potential for larger scale events in the Market Hall, this would allow businesses to open on additional hours or days without having to reconfigure the space.

"If it could be successfully let, this scheme has the greatest income potential, reducing reliance on Council tax subsidy and generating income which could be used on other council services," the report continued.

Refurbishment plans for Leek's Trestle Market have for some months been a source of controversy, with nearly 1,700 local people having signed a petition urging councillors to "reconsider" the permanent stall idea.

"If this happens we lose the market itself," the petition states, "as well as a precious multi functional town centre space, which has been used for over one hundred years for a wide range of social events."

Leek residents and business owners also objected to the £22,500 committed by the Council to a public consultation on the matter, arguing that the results would not succeed in influencing Staffordshire Moorlands' decision on the matter.

In the end, the consultation found that 70 per cent of traders were against the idea of permanent units, with 70 per cent also strongly disagreeing with the addition of street food stalls to the market.

Speaking at a Cabinet meeting last week, Council Leader, Cllr Sybil Ralphs, acknowledged the concerns surrounding these plans, saying that "there was and still is some controversy over fitting [the Trestle Market] out as a fully fledged market hall for the future.

"It does need updating and it's taking nothing away from those people who have had stalls in there for many years and have been very successful and have helped enormously with the local economy of Leek.

"What it is doing is giving them more up-to-date surroundings in which they and new traders can trade.

"It is going to be a project where we literally build from the ground up, and we're here to support wherever we can.

"The first thing we need to do is to get footfall back into Leek. We need to address very quickly the problem of footfall in Leek because, unfortunately, at this moment in time, due to the recent Covid outbreak in the town, it has dropped off considerably.

"We want to bring trade, people and tourism back into Leek," Cllr Ralphs continued, adding that the Council is eager to encourage a "new generation of shoppers", and would like to consider the introduction of an extra day's market trading in the town.

Work on Leek's Market Hall dates back to 2017, when the Council carried out external and electrical repairs on the building.

In May 2020, the Cabinet undertook a 'feasibility study' into investment options for the refurbishment of Market Hall, appointing independent consultancy services to carry out a consultation with traders and residents in October.

Market specialists, Quarterbridge, found that the market "is currently not financially sustainable, and is subsidised by council tax payers.

"Although the Market Hall and Buttermarket has retained a core trader base, it has limited viability to attract new product lines.

"Anecdotally, the market's customer and trader base is ageing, threatening its long-term future if it continues to fail to attract younger demographics."

Quarterbridge's consultation report suggested that the introduction of street food stalls in the market would appeal to a younger demographic.

The Market Hall currently holds 32 trestle tables, and both regular and casual traders use it to sell their wares on a Wednesday and a Saturday.

The proposal to commence the full business case for the installation of permanent retail and food units in the Market Hall was carried unanimously by Cabinet.

The full meeting can be viewed here