New posts, costing £160,000, to breathe new life into Old Town

Hull Council’s leader Steve Brady has approved spending £160,000 on an Old Town manager and market manager for up to two years.

It is part of the build-up for the City of Culture in 2017 and comes as Holy Trinity Church –England’s largest parish church which is also in the Old Town –launched a new brand.

The Old Town manager is expected to “identify opportunities for inward investment and attract new business opportunities” as well as developing “sustainable “indoor and outdoor markets, which have struggled, particularly since the opening of the St Stephen’s shopping mall on the other side of the city centre.

The market manager is expected to seek out new traders for the market, and ensure it is a “clean, safe, lively and culturally rich place”.

The decision to spend the money on the new posts comes as the area start preparing the area for the large numbers of visitors who the City of Culture event is expected to attract and follows a review by Hull University’s business undergraduates.

Meanwhile, the church has marked a new chapter in its 700-year history with the launch of a new brand and website, promoting it as “an amazing place”, which still plays an important part in the life of the city.

In recent years it has hosted fashion events, theatre and beer festivals and later this month local bands will be performing outside the church as part of the Hull Trinity Festival.

The church is also contributing towards the council-led facelift of Trinity Square.

The Vicar of Holy Trinity, the Rev Canon Dr Neal Barnes, said: “Holy Trinity is, of course, primarily a wonderful place of worship in a magnificent setting, rich in heritage. But it is also a surprising, vibrant and creative place, used by so many different people and community groups and playing an important part in the life of our great city.”