'Special' Longton Victorian Market named Staffordshire's best
A Victorian market has been praised as a "special" part of its town after being named the best in Staffordshire.Longton Victorian Market, in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent, won the Market of the Year honour at the Our Staffordshire Business, Charity, Community and Food Awards 2025.The 150-year-old site fended off competition from six other markets, including runners-up Cannock Market and Tunstall Market.Dr Allison Gardner, Stoke-on-Trent South MP, said: "This is a fantastic recognition of the incredible traders, local produce and community spirit that make the market such a special part of Longton."
The awards, run by Our Staffordshire News, were held on 14 April, with more than 30 honours presented during the ceremony.Councillor Finlay Gordon-McCusker, of Stoke-on-Trent City Council, said the honour showed how important markets were to communities."All of our traders and our dedicated markets team work tirelessly to make sure our markets remain at the heart of our town centres, so I would like to pass on my huge congratulations to them," he added.
Follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Shock discovery at Vinnies sparks outrage: 'I am blown away'
Aussies have been left outraged after a shopper complained about the insane price for a basket at an op-shop. Queensland op-shopper Jennifer Zervas found the simple carry basket at a north Brisbane Vinnies with an asking price of $60. She took to TikTok to share her disappointment upon finding the item. '$60 for what? Oh my God, man, are you actually serious?' she asked. 'I just am blown away.' Many Australians said the basket was a sign second hand stores were no longer what they once were. 'All the Australian charity shops are rip offs now,' one wrote. 'Thrift shops are meant to promote reusing unwanted items, and try and steer away from fast fashion and waste,' another said. 'It's meant to be a non-profit thing. It's so upsetting to see this.' 'I'm officially too poor for the op-shop,' a third said. 'Vinnies lost my respect about 11 years ago, they upped the price at the only local store my family could afford clothes at ... Scamming a***holes,' another said. Others agreed shops operated by registered charities, like Vinnies, were no longer useful for those who needed them most. 'It's criminal. the government needs to crack down on this corruption from thrift stores. the have lost the message, which is to help the poor,' one wrote. 'How is a $60 basket helping the unfortunate? They could buy that but better for $10 elsewhere,' another said. 'Op shops have forgotten that their actual role in giving back to community is making clothing and second hand goods accessible and affordable to the community, not raising money for their other 'community initiatives',' a third added. Others said they had seen cheap goods marked up past their original price at op-shops. Many claimed they had seen Kmart and Target home-brand clothes on sale for more than double their original prices. 'I'll never forget donating my clothes and finding one of my dresses there selling for double what I originally paid for it new,' a woman claimed. But others said 'scalpers' had ruined the stores for everybody. They claimed people looking for fashionable and branded items in the stores to resell at used clothes markets and online had led to stores 'following suit'. 'Blame the people who started upselling everything they could get their grubby, (little) mitts on, why wouldn't the original shop just follow suit,' one wrote. 'Especially if it's meant to be for charity this way they get the same (money) as scalpers.' 'Scalpers and well off people have ruined (it) by taking advantage of op shops,' another said.
BBC News
3 hours ago
- BBC News
The Dock: New chapter for Belfast's only honesty café
Belfast's only honesty café has slimmed down, but it is still brimming with goodwill and 2012, teas and coffees and buns at the Dock Café in the city's Titanic Quarter have been pay-what-you-like and free to those who could not not-for-profit café, set up as a charity, has attracted a bunch of regulars and weekly many feared that could all end when commercial rivals Greggs moved in, reducing the café's space by half. The Dock had only ever operated on a so-called "meanwhile lease" until a long-term commercial tenant was found. BBC News NI went down to see how the new set-up was affecting the café's bread and manager Stephen McIlwaine said the overall feeling was one of positivity."Since reopening, feedback has been overwhelmingly encouraging - the word we hear most is cosy," he said. "It is the beginning of a new chapter". While admitting the move into a smaller space has been challenging, he said they were happy to see the area develop and thrive."At the heart of The Dock's vision has always been building community - not just among people, but also among local businesses," he said. "Need a sandwich? Grab one from next door and enjoy it at our tables. We seek to complement, not compete with our local partners." Tess Lunn, who has been volunteering at the Dock for eight years, is loving the new space."It took a wee while to get used to but it's actually working really really well," she said."When you walk in the door it still feels like home."The Dock is a Christian-founded charity and operates on a simple principle: everyone is welcome, and everyone decides what to give. That money is used to pay staff, locally-sourced supplies and energy has more than 50 regular volunteers every week, who serve tea, coffee and sweet treats to visitors. Tess said the Dock was a place she would use to feel safe and she decided to offer her services so others could do the same."It's so much more than a coffee shop," she said. "Every one of our volunteers has a story about why they volunteer here – loneliness, depression, domestic abuse – it's a safe space for people."Mental health and disability groups like Men's Shed and a group from Praxis Care assisted living rely on the space for their weekly meet-ups."Even when they were doing the renovations there and it was closed for a few weeks, a lot of the regulars were really sad that it wasn't open," she said."It would be a great loss to the area if it did permanently close because it's not just the regulars. We get homeless in and sometimes this is the only cup of tea or coffee or scone they actually get in the day." Manager Stephen said the lease arrangement does bring uncertainty. "It limits our ability to invest significantly in the space or plan long-term, despite our proven success," he he remains hopeful for what lies ahead."We've been humbled and encouraged by the generous support of local people and businesses who have stood with us - both practically and financially - to make this move possible," he added. Thousands of people come to the Titanic Quarter every day - to live, work or visit - and the Dock cafe is right on the Henderson, the Titanic Quarter's estate manager, said the new Greggs would be a "great addition" to the area."Titanic Quarters' retailers play a huge role in the local community, fostering a lively and welcoming community space... the decision by Greggs to open a new store at Titanic Quarter is testament to that," he addition to its famous sausage rolls, the new Greggs has also brought new Owen and Ian work nearby, and they are happy to see another lunch option in the said it was "somewhere cheap, quick and easy to grab breakfast or lunch".Dock volunteer Melanie McAlister said she had already been next door to remind the new Greggs staff - "if there aren't enough seats, send people our way".
Telegraph
3 hours ago
- Telegraph
John Lewis to slim down staff committee to accelerate decisions
John Lewis is preparing to radically slim down an influential staff committee in a bid to accelerate decision-making. The retail giant will cut the size of its partnership council by a quarter from this autumn, meaning the number of staff sitting on the committee will fall from 57 to 43. It forms part of an attempt to bolster turnaround efforts at John Lewis, as bosses scramble to improve productivity. The partnership council is John Lewis's most senior staff committee and forms a crucial pillar of its democratic structure. Staff elected to the council can steer how the partnership is run, including holding regular votes on strategy and having the ability to change its constitution. They are also consulted on issues such as staff bonuses and have a small portion of the total budget to invest in wellbeing benefits. In extreme circumstances, they also have the power to dismiss the chairman. John Lewis is understood to have told staff the planned shake-up has been driven by the fact that its current structure 'relies too heavily on hierarchy and escalation'. Under the planned staff rethink, the partnership will also bring back local forums, which will allow staff across its Waitrose supermarkets and department stores to put forward their views. The changes will come into force from October. It comes as John Lewis kicks ahead with a turnaround push to return the business to 'sustainable' profits, after years of losing ground to rivals. The partnership lost money for three years in a row before returning to profit in 2023. In its most recent accounts for the year to the end of January, profits before tax and exceptional items jumped from £42m to £126m, while sales rose by 3pc to £12.8bn. Jason Tarry, who replaced Dame Sharon White as chairman last year, said John Lewis needed to focus on 'considerable catch-up investment in our stores and supply chain'. John Lewis said it reviewed its democratic model every three years when the council term concluded. A spokesman said: 'This will see a stronger focus on local forums to raise local partner opinion alongside a tighter partnership council to support faster decision making. 'The updates have been made in close consultation with our partners – and the power of our council, and the vital role it plays in governing our business remains unchanged.' Recently, the partnership has been facing mounting pressure to restore its staff bonus, which it axed to focus on improving stores and boosting pay rates. Last year marked the third consecutive year that staff did not receive their partnership bonus, and only the fourth time since 1953. In recent weeks, a petition on the campaign website Organise gained more than 4,000 signatures from workers past and present demanding the bonus be reinstated. A spokesman for John Lewis said: 'Our partners understand that we're focused on improving their base pay and investing to create a sustainable business. 'Our bonus remains an important feature of our employee-owned model, and we confirmed in March that we're determined to reinstate it as quickly as possible. We're proud of our unique benefits package and we want to do even to recognise our brilliant partners.'
