Who we are

We are Macclesfield's Economic Forum, a consortium of individuals from a broad range of key stakeholder groups within the community. We are a voluntary group and rely completely on our own resources, skill sets and supportive contributions from sponsors by way of help or donation.

The Macclesfield Economic Forum has been established recently to help strengthen the local economy. It is still a relatively new entity and the members are people with a passion for Macclesfield and who are largely contributing their time, resources and expertise for free. It will take more than a few voices to make a difference we all want to see and so I urge you to share your opinions and thoughts and to think through how you think you could contribute and make a difference. We are all keen to make an impact as quickly as possible to build on recent successes, like the Barnaby Festival and the Treacle Market, and ensure that Macclesfield is a thriving market town.

Whole Town Plan - we  have started to pull together a whole town plan which we will share on the 9th September at the Business breakfast – some of this will highlight activities and progress in the short term and some ideas and plans that are more medium and long term. This includes thoughts focused on retail, leisure, sport, entertainment, culture, restaurants, bars, residential and how do we ensure that key aspects of the town are fully connected. Our aim here is to present our thoughts and then for you to let us know what you think.  We can then all work towards developing a whole town plan ensuring that we are taking into consideration our community’s changing needs, lifestyles and requirements – we want everyone to make Macclesfield their own.

Regeneration Team - this team has met with a number of landlords and stakeholders and is focused on making progress in the following areas – change of use policy, quality of use, cleanliness etc. We would like to have a representative for each area- Chestergate, Mill Street, Dukes Court, Park Green etc – please let us know if you would be interested in this. We are looking in to the issue of rates and gathering relevant information.   We have commenced a feasibility study assessing how we can use our ‘heritage’ buildings for the community more effectively, including the Heritage Centre, Paradise Mill, and Town Hall etc. We will also be meeting with Wilson Bowden to take on board the comments following the public consultation and the Business Breakfast – thank you all for your comments – we will be working hard behind the scenes to ensure that this development fits with the vision for the town as a whole and is right for our community.

Comms and Branding Team - the “Make It Macclesfield…  logo and branding will become more visible, we will ensure that the town is more fully aware of progress in terms of events and changes, using all forms of media. We are exploring the signage for the town. You will also see a regular column in the Macclesfield Express, which will help us all celebrate those people who are Making it Macclesfield. The Make It Macclesfield website will improve each week as more people use it and add to the content.

Wider Economy Team - there are a number of areas for us to explore – retaining talent, attracting business in to Macclesfield, wifi in the Market Place, quality of the environment at the train station, commuter links, and infrastructure– we also are looking to set up specific sector session such as retail, professions, property, etc

Finance Team - the finance team are looking into short, medium and long term ways of raising funds through council, sponsorship, Business Improvement Districts, heritage and lottery funding etc. This is a complex area and we will let you know as we make progress.  Again, please share thoughts and ideas with us on how best to bring monies into Macclesfield which will enable us to further improve our town.

Quick Wins - we are currently exploring the following; improving our public realm, painting and freshening up the town, a deep clean, car parking, creating a Make It Macclesfield Award, annual calendar of events, retail training support  and so on.

Business Breakfast  - we will keep you informed of progress and look forward to seeing you at an upcoming Business Breakfast. See the business section in the ‘What’s on Guide’ for full details and how to book a place at this.

In the meantime we would be delighted to hear from you – challenges, ideas and solutions are always welcome. Please do give us feedback

Clare Hayward: Chairman