Council looks to you for feedback on the “future development and management” of town’s markets

Wrexham Council is looking for the public’s views on the town’s two indoor markets and outdoor market.

A consultation launched earlier this week by the local authority says that responses will help “towards the future development and management” of the Butchers, General and Monday markets.

Market stalls in Tŷ Pawb are not included in this review as they are managed by a separate team / department.

The aim of the consultation is to get feedback from shoppers on whether the three markets are “currently meeting the needs of visitors” and if any changes are “required to ensure the markets are fit for purpose in an ever changing town centre environment”.

Responses to the consultation will help direct the ‘task and finish group when considering the development opportunities and management of the three markets.’

There have beens several reviews and plenty of meetings over the Monday market and the two remaining indoor markets in recent years.

Three years ago ago a “Strategic Asset Management Plan 2016-21 (SAMP)” was published, offering a ‘critical appraisal’ of what was then the three town centre indoor markets, 24 retail shops and the outdoor Monday market.

Back in April 2016 an extensive wish list of improvements and changes were released, which contained estimates that to comprehensively refurbish the property to an overall standard that would be considered ‘excellent’, in the region of £128,000 for the General Market and £290,000 for the Butchers Market would need to be spent.

Just 12 months later it was emphasised by councillors and officers that the markets “remain a priority”, with plans to ensure they have a future and are fit for a modern retail environment.

Last year in an update to councillors, it was noted that Wifi had (finally) been installed in the two indoor markets and that CCTV was set to be installed in 2021.

The current consultation puts forward a series of questions, including whether you visit any of the three markets while in town, how often and your reasons for doing so.

There is then the chance to ‘rate’ the environment, goods on sale, convenience of the location and accessibility; before providing feedback on what improvements (if any) that you would like to see made.

Finally participants are asked whether they have visited any other markets across the UK and what their appeal is.

The consultation itself is relatively simple and takes a few minutes to get through.

The information collected will help direct a task and finish group made up of councillors ‘when considering the development opportunities and management of the three markets’.

You can take part in the process on the Your Voice Wrexham website, here.