Meeting Held To Discuss Romford Market Regeneration.

Councillor Graham Williamson, Cabinet Member For Regeneration today writes in the Havering Daily on the plans for Romford market.

As a councillor, I’ve always believed that some of the best ideas come from the community. That belief was reaffirmed last week where stakeholders from across the community gathered for a vibrant and inspiring Design Workshop focused on Romford Market’s future. 

This event built on the extensive consultation we carried out during the production of the new Romford Master Plan, adopted by the Council earlier this year.

The atmosphere was electric with creativity and collaboration. It isn’t just about shopping in Romford Market, it’s about shaping it.

We asked council and market trader representatives, as well as delegates from the Greater London Authority (GLA), Transport for London (TfL), Historic England, Metropolitan Police, Romford BID, Brewery, Liberty, Mercury Mall, Romford Shopping Hall, St Edwards Church, and the charity and volunteer sectors, what their thoughts were and they all responded with passion and insight.

What I heard from them included fantastic ideas such as:

·      * a market that reflects our borough’s heritage and diversity that celebrates the food, crafts and traditions of our community

·      * potentially extend market hours to draw visitors into the evening, with music, lighting and food, exploiting the real potential to create a welcoming, family friendly space after dark

·      * more wellbeing and education from health checks to cooking demonstrations, stakeholders expressed a strong interest in using the public space to support healthier lifestyles

·       * more support for independent traders and entrepreneurs. There’s a clear desire to see Romford Market become a springboard for local talent and small business innovation.

So what happens next?

As a councillor representative, I’ll continue to champion these ideas and ensure they are part of the conversation as we move forward.

The stakeholder comments from the Design Workshop event will be used to refine more detailed proposals for Market Place by the autumn, at which point further public consultation will follow. The Market belongs to all of us, and its future should reflect the voices of those who use and care about it. We know lots of people, like me, have ideas and opinions about the market so please get involved when we consult on the plans.

It might be easy to write the Market off as ‘not as good as it used to be’, or complain that previous Administrations made promises they haven’t kept, but, let me reassure you, this isn’t a one-time event for us.

Let’s keep the productive conversation going and work together to shape a market that reflects the very best Havering has to offer.

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