Councillor fears Glossop's Market Hall scheme costs may have rocketed with delays

An outspoken opposition councillor fears the cost of High Peak Borough Council’s Glossop Market Hall renovation scheme for the authority and the public purse has greatly increased during on-going delays.

High Peak Borough Council started the rejuvenation of Glossop’s Market Hall, Town Hall and Municipal Buildings in October, 2022, as part of a £7m scheme funded by the council including a £2m grant from the former Government-backed D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership which is now part of a strategic partnership under the East Midlands Combined County Authority.

Surveys revealed the Market Hall’s roof needed replacing and a report recommended work be carried out as part of the council’s drive to repair, restore and safeguard the town’s heritage halls with refurbishments planned and included for Glossop Town Hall and the Municipal Buildings.

But concerning Glossop Market Hall, Conservative High Peak Borough Cllr Adrian Hopkinson said: “It was in the 1840s when the building was initially built and over time it needed rebuilding and with old buildings problems crop up.”

Cllr Hopkinson says the project is now several years old and it has faced and is still facing many delays and he fears the overall scheme’s cost is more accurately around £11m rather than the project’s originally stipulated £7m.

He claims the roof has needed a lot more work than originally thought, costs of materials have increased, and he claims there was a struggle to get workers to do jobs for the council because council work requires them to pay costly indemnity insurance which created further delays. 

Cllr Hopkinson also claims completion targets have been missed including one in early 2024 and he fears plans for an April or May opening, in 2025, will be further delayed and they could be as late as September, 2025. 

The council stated in September, 2024, that the Glossop Market Hall renovation was making ‘good progress’. 

Labour Cllr Damien Greenhalgh, Deputy Leader and Executive Councillor for Regeneration, Tourism and Leisure, said, at that time, the market hall was looking ‘absolutely fantastic’ and the council was ‘delighted’ with it and really pleased to be able to share images of the building. 

And Labour Council Leader, Cllr Anthony McKeown, also said: “We’re making great progress – the work in the Market Hall is now very nearly complete which is a big milestone. The programme of work in the Town Hall is, however, taking a little longer due to the inevitable challenges buildings like these present.” 

Cllr McKeown said it was important the council spends time now to get the right result before the buildings are expected to reopen in 2025 and that it would be well worth the wait. 

But Cllr Hopkinson said Glossop Market Hall should have originally opened in April, 2024, and he questioned how the scheme could be progressing well when there has been at least one year’s delay and the council still does not have an opening date. 

The council stated at an early stage that work at the Market Hall would include replacing electrical and fire safety systems with a 12-month temporary closure but there were plans to engage with traders based at the hall to discuss their requirements and support them with alternative arrangements during this period. 

But Cllr Hopkinson claims fire safety concerns with the building meant it was necessary to build a new fire escape, three new fire doors and put in a new window creating further unforeseen delays and costs. 

He added: “Everything shows they have not thought about this. This is causing the whole delay of the project. I know how much that fire escape cost and there is not much change out of £100,000 and vents are £150,000. That is a quarter of a million not accounted for.” 

Cllr Hopkinson also claims the three newly-installed fire doors are not thick enough and may not comply with regulations and he believes they have been fitted at a cheaper cost and he has not been able to see a paper trail to confirm if they have been fitted by workers with appropriate certification. 

By December, 2024, the council stated that the major regeneration project to rejuvenate Glossop’s halls was almost complete and the council was in the final stages of appointing a partner to manage the buildings and the services they will provide. 

It added that construction work was near completion and the council was in the process of completing legal work to formally appoint Fork and Field Catering Limited as its operational partner following a recent decision by the council’s Executive. 

Cllr Mckeown has said: “What originally started off as just repairs and replacement of the market roof became a plan with the additional funding we were able to get, to restore and return the whole complex back to use. 

“Buildings of this age and heritage inevitably present challenges and things have taken a little longer than any of us hoped. I’d like to thank people for their ongoing patience whilst we complete these final stages.” 

Cllr Hopkinson argued the council still needs to be more open about the delays, the nature and problems of necessary work, any updated costs to the council and to residents, the increasing loss of rent and how this will all be covered, as well as the impact upon businesses waiting to return to the Market Hall. 

He said: “I think they need to be honest with the public because the Leader of the Council and his Deputy do say this project is a £7.5m project.

“But I put in a question to Full Council and I said how much will it cost in the end? It’s an £11m project.”

Cllr Hopkinson added: “If we are not open and honest we are not going to realise mistakes and reflect and learn from them and apologise.

“We have got to be open. It’s not fair on the public and when they are not telling you the scheme cost, it makes me wonder what they are hiding.”

The council hopes the rejuvenation scheme for the halls in Glossop including the Market Hall will create new business opportunities as well as new food and drink, leisure and socialising spaces, and places for community use.

Cllr Greenhalgh has said: “This is game-changing for Glossop. The major investment we’ve made provides something for everyone and will ensure these buildings are the beating heart of our town now and in the decades to come.

“We are sure, after a rigorous selection and assurance process, that our new operating partner has a clear vision, the right values and ambitious plans for the use of these buildings which match the outstanding new interiors.

“Once the paperwork is complete, we’ll be revealing the name they’ll be trading under in Glossop and sharing more details about what we all have to look forward to in the New Year.”

High Peak Borough Council owns the Market Hall, Town Hall and the Municipal Buildings and the town’s Victoria Hall is owned in a trust.

The authority has been asked for a statement about the scheme’s overall costs, delays and final completion date but the authority has not yet responded.

Cllr Greenhalgh has also previously accused the former Conservative Government and former Conservative MP Robert Largan of failing to work with the council and of snubbing Glossop after it missed out on £20m of Levelling Up funding in 2023 after reportedly scoring poorly on measures used to prioritise funding applications.

The council had planned to use this funding for a new leisure and wellbeing centre in Glossop with improvements to the community arts venue Victoria Hall.

Former Conservative High Peak MP Robert Largan claimed in 2023 there had been concerns with the council’s Levelling Up bid over the lack of detailed costs, detailed designs, timelines, and relevant planing permission.