£750,000 roof will be new food hall's crowning glory

The new £750,000 roof on part of Clitheroe's Holmes Mill will be the crowning glory of James' Places local produce flagship, the Bowland Food Hall, which is due to open at the end of May.

The roof, specially designed by Charles Stanton Architects, of Clitheroe, is just part of a £10m investment by the hospitality group in Holmes Mill, a derelict former textile mill in the heart of the Ribble Valley town, to turn it into a food, drink and leisure hub.

The roof, a wavy design fabricated from standing seam aluminium and a lightweight 3D tubular truss, is due to be completed by the middle of April. It replaces a weatherproof, but not very pretty, structure on the part of the mill which was the weaving shed. It will flow into a contemporary, eye-catching wall made up of vast sheets of toughened glass.

Behind the wall of glass lies the space which will become the Bowland Food Hall - a 6,390 sq ft ground floor room, which will become a retail outlet for local producers and celebrate the many, varied products created and farmed in the Bowland area and beyond.

Said Alison Ashworth, Bowland Food Hall buyer: "We aim to be an outlet for all those fantastic foods and products which our very talented local farmers and growers are producing.

"Bowland is an amazing place. Not only do we have the natural resources for producing top quality homegrown food and drink, it is home to some inspirational people using ingredients sourced both from here and further afield to create delicious, mouthwatering products.

"Until now, these producers have had limited local outlets from which brings their goods the attention they deserve. The Food Hall will champion Bowland's plentiful larder - the tasty cheeses, hand-crafted chocolates, superfresh eggs laid by chickens living a stone's throw away, in-season, low-food-miles fruit, vegetables and salads, rare breed fresh and cooked meats and sausages, the list goes on."

Customers will experience a farm shop-type atmosphere, done the James' Places way, to browse wares from a myriad of different local producers.

The conversion of the weaving shed is the latest phase in Holmes Mill's transformation. Already the mill is home to the Bowland Brewery - whose award-winning bottled ales will be on sale in the Food Hall - the Beer Hall, which houses what is believed to be one of the longest bars in Britain, and its Function Room, café, gelateria and shop. A 41 bedroom apart-hotel is due to open in June.

Alison said: "The whole Holmes Mill project is on target to create around 180 new jobs and has already transformed what was a run-down building into an attractive leisure destination. The Bowland Food Hall will add another dimension to a visit to the mill." James' Places portfolio includes Holmes Mill, The Emporium, Clitheroe, Waddington Arms in Waddington, Mitton Hall at Mitton, The Royal Hotel at Kirkby Lonsdale, Eaves Hall, West Bradford, Shireburn Arms at Hurst Green, Falcon Manor, Settle and the Bowland Brewery. All share the same service values and ethos for beautiful surroundings with exceptional food and drink.