“Terrific victory” for Friends of Barnet Market

Rarely has the presence of a mechanical digger been welcomed with such enthusiasm as greeted its arrival on the site of Barnet Market, heralding the start of a long-promised and much-delayed resurfacing and improvement.

Seeing contractors working on the site after so much disappointment in the past was in itself a “terrific victory”, says Chris Smith of the Friends of Barnet Market, who has campaigned so energetically on behalf of both stallholders and shoppers.

The £100,000 upgrade of the site should be completed by November, and in the meantime the Wednesday and Saturday markets will be held in the area around the bandstand outside the Waitrose supermarket at the Spires shopping centre.

In addition to resurfacing there will be new fencing around the market and the installation of toilet and washing facilities for the stallholders.

without the efforts of FoBM these last few years there would be no market left to rebuild

Planning approval has been obtained by the Pears Group to use the market site as a car park on non-market days.

In a message of thanks to members of the Friends of Barnet Market, Chris Smith reflected on the long years of delays and false starts:

“This is a terrific victory for the Friends. One of the market traders recently told me that without the efforts of FoBM these last few years there would be no market left to rebuild. I think he is right . . . so thank you for all your wonderful support.”