City wins fight to demolish market

Sheffield Council had opposed an anonymous request to consider the Castle Market building for listing because it has ambitious redevelopment plans for the area, which include demolishing the market.

Another part of the plan is to unearth the remains of Sheffield's 13th century castle that lie beneath the floors of the modern- day structure.

Sheffield Council leader Councillor Paul Scriven said: "This is fantastic news.

"The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has effectively endorsed our view that Castle Market is not of listable quality.

"Castle Market consists of not very attractive, worn-out, not fit-for-purpose market buildings, that's why we are working to build a new market on the Moor.

"Castlegate is one of Sheffield's most important historic sites and we want to explore and find out what's really under there.

"If the 1960s Castle Market building was listed we wouldn't have been able to demolish the market to make the ruins of the Castle more accessible, it would have been like a dead weight hanging around the neck of Sheffield.

"Thankfully now we can truly realise our vision for the Castlegate area, including revealing the remains of Sheffield Castle."

Castle Market was also rejected as a candidate for listing in 1995. The future vision for the area includes opening up the area to include parks and gardens.

Sheffield Castle dates from 1270 and in the 1500s was a large stone-built defensive structure which was owned by the Earl of Shrewsbury.

Mary Queen of Scots spent much of her 19-year imprisonment at Sheffield Castle and its Manor Lodge and – while the Castle's remains are buried – the Manor Lodge turret house still stands in the middle of Sheffield's Manor housing estate.