The manager of Bolton Market has won a national 'Markets Heroes' award recognising his leadership and hard work during the pandemic.
Pete Entwistle, Bolton Market Manager
The National Association of British Market Authorities (NABMA) recently celebrated its annual awards ceremony online.
And Bolton's own Pete Entwistle scooped up the award for market manager of the year in the larger market category.
Judge's praised Pete's "tenacity, commitment and personality" in his role as markets manager during the crisis and said his "quiet and unassuming" approach had provided "resilient management" and "excellent team leadership" at the market.
Pete and his team have worked hard to keep the market open during the pandemic - and judges praised efforts to support fresh food traders to remain operational.
Traders were supported to start new delivery and click and collect services - with the market's Facebook page being used to provide information to customers. In a year, the Market's Facebook page fans have grown from 4,000 in March to 16,000 at the last count.
Despite the challenges of Covid-19, Bolton Market's footfall has remained stable over the last year.
Cllr Hilary Fairclough, Bolton Council Executive Cabinet Member for Environmental Regulatory Services said: "Well done to Pete and the team at Bolton Market for their superb work during the pandemic which has kept traders and customers safe and allowed operations to continue.
"Pete is a credit to the council and in the last 12 months has worked tirelessly to ensure traders are supported and looked after and customers can get the produce they need safely. The move to home delivery and click and collect was inspired and it's amazing how quickly Pete and the team were able to get this up and running. It's proved really popular especially with older customers.
"Throughout the last year, Pete has acted as a vital link between market traders and customers and the senior council management. He's earnt the trust of both and that's made decision making a lot easier. This award is thoroughly well deserved - Pete really is a market hero!"
In October, Bolton Council submitted a bid for £25 from the Government's Towns Fund. If successful, £5.19m will be spent on improvements to Bolton Market, which would see the outdoor market refurbished, upgrades to the internal halls, and all the entrances to the building improved.