Dismay as market stalls plan gets OK

Plans for Shaw Market to be moved to Market Street.

A CONTROVERSIAL plan to introduce temporary market stalls in front of shops in Shaw has been approved - to the dismay of business owners.

Oldham Council’s licensing panel granted permission for a 10-week trial that will see 15 stalls trade along Market Street on Thursdays. Market Street will be closed to cars and buses during trading.

The trial will start next month, with further consultation towards the end of the period.

Business owners voiced their objections at yesterday’s licensing panel hearing, with the main concerna decline in footfall due to buses being diverted, and problems with deliveries.

Markets manager Sharon Hibbert said: “Shaw Market has been in decline for years. We need to move the market to where the footfall is.

“This is just a trial and I don’t have a crystal ball so I don’t know if it will be successful. Hopefully, it will increase trade.”

Julie Clark, who has run the Coffee and Sandwich Bar for almost 13 years, said: “I just don’t understand why this proposal has even been suggested. To close Market Street is pure lunacy.

“Buses drop people off on Market Street so to stop them coming down is going to seriously affect our trade.”

Lib-Dem leader and Shaw ward Councillor Howard Sykes has started a petition to keep Shaw Market where it is with a guarantee from the council that it will invest in securing its future.