A brand-new food hall offering a range of cuisines from across the world has just opened inside Bolton Market.
Fresh off-the-back of the town being named Greater Manchester’s new ‘Town of Culture’, Bolton is already proving why 2024 is its year, as the latest development in the wider £5.9 million transformation of its town centre-based Market is now complete, and officially opened its doors to the eagerly-awaiting public last Friday (7 June).
Bolton is already known as one of our region’s foodie capitals, largely thanks to the annual – and very popular – Bolton Food and Drink Festival, which will be making a 2024 return this August bank holiday weekend, but now the opening of the new food hall cements the town as champions of food all year round.
Visitors to Bolton Market’s new food hall will be able to tuck into a wide range of cuisines from all across the globe.
Japanese, Caribbean, Indian, Italian, are just some of the tasty cuisines food traders will be serving up inside the Market food hall, as well as gourmet burgers, healthy chicken, sandwiches, freshly-cooked kebab dishes, sweet drinks and desserts, and so much more.
There’ll be a variety of options available for lunchtimes, after-work treats, and weekend dining too.
Aside from the foodie offering, there’s also a new gin bar from The Bolton Gin Company, named Chill, and the new venue is also home to several sports screens set to show all the action from the upcoming UEFA EURO 2024 football championship.
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Then, as a way of making the venue a nighttime destination too, Bolton Market will be extending its operating hours and the food hall will stay open later on Fridays and Saturdays, with local musicians and acoustic acts invited along to entertain diners.
Both indoor and outdoor seating is available at the new food hall – with room for 200 people to sit indoors, and a further 160 seats on offer outside.
A new food hall with a gin bar, sports screens, and more has opened inside Bolton Market / Credit: Bolton Market
Jon Dyson, who is the Director of Place at Bolton Council, said he’s excited for the new food hall to offer “even more variety” to the town.
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He continued: “After more than 70 food and drink traders toured the premises and expressed interest, the final selection was based on individual business cases and how we could provide a variety of options for customers.
“With Bolton being a popular place to work and study, this new venue will offer more dining choices for lunchtime breaks, as well as being a great addition to the town’s weekend hospitality scene, offering live music, entertainment, and sports on screens.”
Bolton Market Food Hall is now open from Tuesday and Thursday from 11am-5pm, Friday and Saturday from 11am-9:30pm, Sunday from 12pm-6pm, and closed on Mondays and Wednesdays.
Featured Image – Paul Heyes (via Bolton Council)
Bolton
Local Bolton schoolkids chosen to select street names in new neighbourhood
Danny Jones
Some local schoolkids from Bolton are among the lucky few to be chosen for a great honour: to be the people responsible for selecting the street names for a brand new neighbourhood.
That’s definitely something to tell their little ones and grandchildren someday.
For anyone from the Bolton area, you may have heard of the new development popping up over in Little Lever, a burgeoning suburban area not too far away from Moses Gate Country Park.
Carrying on the ‘Creams Mill’ moniker as a whole, a group of students from nearby Mytham Primary School have further been entrusted with naming the next leafy chapter of village life.
Credit: Watson (press shots)
Picking a handful of pupils from members of the school council, who have clearly already shown plenty of initiative and interest in extracurricular activities, property firm Watson Homes first visited the school back in 2023 to allow some young minds to take part in an exciting competition.
Known as ‘The Change Makers’ in Mytham Primary, not only did they find out more about the brownfield plot, but also more about the site’s surrounding history, including its rich industrial heritage, the significance of the canal corridor in the wider context of Greater Manchester and more.
Having then been inspired by everything from the waterways to the native wildlife, names were thrown into the mix; now, more than two years later, eight of those bright-eyed pupils and some of their teachers were invited back for a mini grand opening of their own.
Getting to see the road signs unveiled for the first time – Woodpecker Road, Deer Lane, Owl Lane, Dragonfly Court, Middle Bents Lane, and Bally Close – as well as putting the finishing touches on other things like hedgehog pathways and birdboxes. Cute.
They even got to name three apartment buildings within Creams Mill, which have now been dubbed Davenport House, Fletcher House, and Waterway House. Such a cool experience for these youngsters.
Honestly, how wholesome is this?
Credit: Supplied
The Manchester-based affordable housing firm’s director, Mike Watson, said in a statement: “It has been incredibly rewarding to see the pupils of Mytham Primary return to the site and see their ideas become part of the streets they helped to imagine.
“This project started with conversations in a classroom and is now taking shape on the ground – from the new homes rising across the site to the restoration of the canal.
“This is a development that genuinely reflects Little Lever’s heritage and future ambitions, and is a powerful example of how regeneration is rooted in community pride as well as bricks and mortar.”
We think we speak for everyone when we say this is the kind of work in the community that we’d like to see more of from the various developers across the region.
Murder investigation launched and man arrested after woman found dead in Bolton flat
Emily Sergeant
A murder investigation has been launched after a woman was found dead at a flat in Bolton.
Yesterday (Monday 19 January 2026) at around 10am, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) responded to a concern for welfare at an address on Kempston Gardens, in the Halliwell area of Bolton, and when officers arrived at the scene, they found a female who was ‘unresponsive’ inside the address.
CPR commenced, but despite the best efforts of all involved, paramedics pronounced the woman as dead shortly after.
A murder investigation has been subsequently launched, and a 33-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of murder, and remains in custody for questioning at this time.
A police cordon remains in place while investigations are underway, and GMP is now appealing to the public for information.
“Our priority at this time is identifying the female and informing her family as soon as we are able to,” commented Detective Inspector Louise Kelly, of the Major Incident Team.
“Specialist officers will be available to support them throughout this investigation.
“A murder investigation has been launched and whilst we currently have a man in custody, there is a police cordon in place, and we are conducting enquires to establish the circumstances which have led to this tragic incident.
“We understand that an incident of this nature may cause concern within the community, however we believe there is no wider risk to the public.”
Emily Sergeant -
11th June 2024 
