The market tells the story of Burslem’s rise and subsequent decline, with its ghost signs and fading advertisements from the Victorian era that still adorn several closed shops attached to the market hall. Burslem indoor market’s gothic design and ironwork is reminiscent of King’s Cross station in London.
Our Burslem
Grade II-listed, 1879, E.M. Richards
Burslem Market Hall opened in 1879, to designs by E.M. Richards, and survives much as it was built, retaining its original glazed iron roof and stalls. It is significant as one of the earliest examples of its type to use new structural technologies for wide-span iron, and for its unusual interpretation of Gothic architecture, which maximises usable floor space in a complex and constrained site. The market closed its doors for the final time in 2003 following an incident where masonry dropped from the ceiling, in which it was deemed unsafe for shoppers. It is now in need of vital repairs, with its roof in danger of collapse, but the repair bill is expected to be close to £1,000,000.
Griff Rhys Jones, Victorian Society President, said: ‘Like many Victorian markets across the country, Burslem Indoor Market was a busy part of the town. Now it stands empty and crumbling, a sad sight for those who still remember it bustling with life. Funding must be secured to repair this public building, which could create new job opportunities, and revive a community space. The market covers 11,000 square metres, with shops, and market floor, that could be re-imagined as community-use-space, small business premises and much, much more. Stoke on Trent Council is very keen to find a developer to assist them in bringing this building back to use. Could it be you?’
Status Update / March 2026
Historic England awarded the local council £1 million towards the repair and revival of the building in 2024, but this was withdrawn in 2026 following concerns over the large upfront costs of materials and potential delays in works starting. The council has since allocated £3.35 million of its own funds towards the project, together with £2.6 million for the Wedgwood Institute, also in Burslem. A spokesperson said that safeguarding these buildings means is partly about preserving the town’s heritage, but also about ‘keeping regeneration options open’, and that ‘walking away would be irresponsible’.