Bassetlaw District Council is putting forward a proposal to create a new dedicated indoor market area at the Priory Centre as part of a £20 million town centre investment.
In January 2023, the Council was awarded £17.9m of UK Government Levelling Up Funding to invest in Worksop Town Centre, with an additional £2 million in funding provided by the Council and its partners.
In this time, the Council has taken ownership of the Priory Centre and has announced, along with its leisure partners BPL, the creation of a town centre facility that mixes retail, entertainment, and leisure.
Just some of the facilities already confirmed will include a new food court, a bowling alley, climbing wall and indoor adventure play area, as well as new toilet facilities and a Changing Places toilet.
The Council is now asking the public, traders, businesses and local stakeholders for their views on a proposal to create a dedicated, multi-functional, indoor market area that would reposition the markets from their current location of Bridge Street, into the Priory Centre.
Cllr Julie Leigh, Cabinet Member for Identity and Place, said: “Through the Levelling Up Fund, we intend to revitalise Worksop Town centre, including making an investment in our markets that will open up a number of new opportunities for both traders and the public.
“A new, indoor home for the markets presents traders with the option to operate seven days a week, 52 weeks per year, should they wish to do so, breathing new life into a market that has been established over many years.
“Being located indoors, at the heart of a major new regeneration project, it also provides a more reliable environment to encourage start-up businesses and create a route of progression for market traders to grow from a stall to a retail unit.
“This proposal will place the markets at the heart of the shopping centre and safeguard them for future years by making Worksop’s markets more financially sustainable and self-reliant.”
Nationally and locally, markets have been in decline over the last 10 years, with the Council’s income from markets reducing year on year. Added to this, the costs of running Worksop’s markets have increased significantly. The current cost to the Council to provide a market now outweighs the income received.
Currently the overall cost to the Council to provide a market in Worksop each year, after income, stands at £183k. The Council’s aim is to reinvigorate Worksop Market so that it provides a sustainable income, allowing reinvestment into the market for the future.
