Wirral maps out Birkenhead Market’s future
After five years of pursuing and then abandoning different proposals for the trading hall, the council has decided to move vendors into the former TJ Hughes site and vacant units at The Grange shopping centre, and to demolish the market’s 48-year home.
The saga of Birkenhead Market is befitting the institution’s 190-year history, which saw it expand in the 1800s and then change locations from the current site of the Town Hall to its present-day home in the Grange precinct in the 1970s after two fires.
While locations have changed, the market has remained.
Wirral Council has voted to keep the spirit of the market alive by moving the existing 31 traders en masse to the former TJ Hughes unit at the Pyramids shopping centre. TJ Hughes left the space in 2021, and the unit has been vacant since.
Traders who would rather not move to the Pyramids will be able to open up at refurbished units at The Grange shopping centre.
Leader of Wirral Council Cllr Paula Basnett said: “When I became Leader of Wirral Council, ensuring that we developed a viable new plan for the market, in partnership with the traders and with openness and transparency, was a top priority.
“This new way forward will see traders find a new home in the heart of the town centre, helping to support the sustainability of their businesses as well as growing a new era for Birkenhead Market. I now look forward to us pushing these plans forward into reality as quickly as possible.”
The proposal solves three problems: activating vacant units in the two council-owned properties (the shopping centres were acquired by Wirral Council in 2023), saving the council from continuing to fund an out-of-date market building (the market operated at a loss of £750,000 last year), and freeing up the current market site for demolition.
Refurbishing the current market hall was considered, but indicative costs put the price tag at £22m.
Wirral Council will now be exploring the building of an outdoor market and event space on the current market site.
How we got here
This is the third plan for Birkenhead Market from the council within the past five years.
In November 2021, the local authority had decided to build a new market hall on the former House of Fraser site. £1.5m was spent on this project before it was abandoned in March 2024 to pursue what was meant to be a cheaper option – refurbishing the former Argos site to be a new market.
Designs were approved, preliminary works completed, a contractor appointed in principle, and £1.3m spent before this, too, was deemed unsuitable. The council decided on 10 September 2025 to abort this plan.
Next steps
The chief executive will be overseeing the next chapter of Birkenhead Market’s story. This includes conducting consultation exercises, securing costs and contractors, and appointing project teams for the demolition and future outdoor market square. Wirral Council’s economy and regeneration committee will be kept abreast of developments through regular reports.
Funds for the Birkenhead Market project will need to be spent by the end of March 2028, as per the terms of the £12m allocated from the council’s grant from the Local Regeneration Fund.
