A BREAKTHROUGH could soon be made to secure the future of Middlewich’s artisan market.

Middlewich bosses have been in negotiation with Cheshire East highways over the monthly event in Wheelock Street.

The town council has agreed to pay a one-off fee to the borough council which will give it the right to close the road for more than 50 stalls.

But a figure has not been settled on.

“The town council will, in effect, purchase the right to close the road,” said town clerk Jonathan Williams.

“The artisan market is a private business and we’re spending public money but our stance is this will give us the control to do what we want in the town.

“It won’t be just for the market - it will help with events like the FAB Festival, mayor’s parade and at Christmas.

“We will make sure the road closure issue is resolved but we need to talk about the finer detail of it with Cheshire East Council.

“An agreement would take away the uncertainty so we can plan ahead for the market.”

The next artisan market in Wheelock Street is on Saturday, February 23, between 10am and 4pm, after the January market was called off due to adverse weather.

Alongside the food, drink, crafts and entertainment, Clr Allan Croll and Town Mayor Simon McGrory will be on hand to talk to residents at a surgery between 10am and noon.

Clr McGrory added: “I am very happy that after the bad weather last month the artisan market organisers and Middlewich Town Council have confirmed their commitment to support a market in Middlewich every month this year.

“I thoroughly enjoyed the vibrancy the artisan market brought to the town and look forward to enjoying the experiences again this year."

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THE award-winning artisan market organisers have been invited to the House of Commons for their work helping to revitalise east Cheshire towns.

Denise Valente and Victoria Jackson will be attending the Action for Market Towns annual reception on March 19.

With around 400 members, Action for Market Towns is a national charity committed to preserving the viability of market towns which are home to around 11 million people.

Denise said: “It's been a significant year for market towns. The Localism Act has provided communities with the opportunity to have a greater involvement in local planning and Action for Market Towns has been supporting this at the grassroots level.

“The focus on constructing a new vision of the high street has resonated across market towns and our charity continues to champion innovative ideas for change.”