“Bringing the co-operative back to Rochdale” – Stallholders reveal plans for future of market after submitting tender

A computer generated image of how the new market could look

The stallholders of Rochdale Market plan to form a co-operative as part of their tender to become the new operator of the market.

There would be an outside market on The Butts, in line with the Council plans, with a selection of food stalls gracing the ground floor of the Santander building. Businesses such as the haberdashery would be found on the first floor and a second-floor café with rooftop access would complete the layout.

The building would require some renovations to the interior, including lift access and creating storage space for the outside stalls.

Clifford Harker, who runs the Haberdashery, said: “We’re hoping to provide quite a variety of stalls on the market. It’s been very hard work and we’ve all done very well to get where we have with everything.”

Peter Jordan, whose family have been trading on the market for 97 years, said: “Rochdale without a co-operative market is like a fish out of water. We’ve got the basis of a good market which needs supporting; we’ve got over 6,000 people backing us with pledges and signatures.”

The stallholders await the outcome of their application, which will be decided just before Christmas on 23 December.