A BAKERY with sites in Cirencester and Tetbury has won Great Taste Awards for the third year running. KNEAD Bakery’s cinnamon buns, tiramisu tarts and stollen buns all received awards in the national competition. The cinnamon bun and tiramisu tart each received a two-star award, with the buns praised for a ‘buttery, light and decadent’...
Read More
Cirencester Tesco plans refused by Cotswold District Council
Plans to demolish the vacant Tesco Superstore in Farrell Close and build a new four-storey retirement complex have been refused on the grounds that ‘the proposed development, by virtue of its size, scale, mass and design, would have an adverse impact on the character and appearance of Cirencester Town Centre Conservation Area.’ The plans included...
Read More
Major store in Cirencester to close
Hobbycraft has announced that its store in Cirencester’s Love Lane will shut as part of ‘necessary’ changes brought on by ‘the challenges faced by the retail sector in recent years’. It plans to close at least nine stores across the UK , including Cirencester – which only saw its Hobbycraft shop open in October 2021...
Read More
New retail openings in Cirencester town centre
Several independent food businesses have recently opened in the town including a Ukrainian coffee shop Phoenix Café at the entrance to the Woolmarket, artisan foodie outlet Patisserie Box in Bishops Walk and confectionery shop Chocolate has launched in Gosditch Street. These new arrivals coincide with the announcement that, despite mixed views from the general public,...
Read More
King’s Head Hotel in Cirencester acquired by Brakspear
Oxfordshire-based Brakspear has announced this week that it has taken over the King’s Head Hotel in Cirencester’s Market Place. The hotel, which has 66 bedrooms, is the latest in the Cotswolds to be acquired by the business. It will be overseen by Brakspear’s managed house division, Honeycomb Houses who are making an initial investment in...
Read More
Cirencester table tennis group for people with Parkinson’s
A NEW table tennis and pickleball group has been set up in Cirencester for people living with Parkinson’s disease. The group is part of a pilot project funded by Cotswold District Council’s Active Cotswold Programme in partnership with Freedom Leisure and the Cirencester and Stroud branch of Parkinson’s UK. To kickstart the programme, Active Cotswold...
Read More
Luxury brand opens in time for Christmas
The White Company opened its doors to its brand-new shop in Cirencester’s Market Place at 9.30am on Thursday, December 5. The shop offers a curated store concept, which will provide customers with a showroom experience and an edit of the brand’s lifestyle products and gifting. This includes fragrance, home accessories and essentials for the home...
Read More
Closed bank branches set to return to life as retail units
A new planning application indicates that The White Company intends to open in the former Barclays outlet in Market Place which closed in November last year. And there was more good news for the town’s retail scene this week after plans to open a branch of the Cornish Bakery in the old HSBC, also in...
Read More
Have your say on parking in Cirencester
Cotswold District Council has launched a second consultation on parking and is inviting drivers and residents to give their views. Councillor Paul Hodgkinson, cabinet member for health, leisure and parking at CDC, said that the council wishes to know where respondents park, the reason for their visit and improvements that could be made. The first consultation...
Read More
Paris-inspired bar opens in Cirencester
A NEW bar promising top coffee and natural wine has launched in Cirencester. Matilda’s opened to the public in Bishops Walk earlier in September. Run by Harry Lodge and Alex McKay, who have experience working in Cotswold pubs, the new venue will serve coffee from studio roasters along with natural wines, local beers and cocktails....
Read More