First outdoor market in Whaley Bridge for more than 30 years

The Farmers and Arts at the Basin Market is the next stage in Whaley Bridge Canal Group’s plan to rejuvenate the basin and historic transhipment shed.

The event will see over thirty traders converge on the basin, with cheeses, pies, meats, olive oil, cakes, beers, wines and much more.

Nev Clarke, organiser and the founder of Whaley Bridge Canal Group, said the thought of returning the basin to public use filled him with joy.

He added: “It has been a fantastic year. We’re seeing more people than ever turn up to our sessions.

“This market is intended as a celebration and also to show what can and should be done on a regular basis.”

The intention is that the FAB market will be a regular, bimonthly event raising money and awareness for the canal group and the subsequent rejuvenation work at Whaley Bridge canal basin.

Whaley Bridge Canal Group has been operating since 2011 with unofficial litter picks before they approached the Canal and River Trust and formally adopted the canal basin and approximately half-a-mile of towpath in 2012.

Organisers say the effort has brought people of all ages and from all across the community together to litter pick, paint, prune and plant.

The group began working to transform and restore the 200 year-old transhipment shed last year.

They hope that the renovation to the building will eventually bring it back into daily use for the first time since the 1970s.

The Farmers and Arts at the Basin Market will run from 10am to 4pm and will also feature live demonstrations of weaving, balloon sculpting and other live entertainment.