The Wool Exchange 

Nominated by Haris Ahmed, Poet & Writer 

“A stone’s throw from City Hall, framed by Market street, Hustlergate and Bank Street, is Bradford’s imposing Wool Exchange. I nominate The Wool Exchange because it’s only as I’ve gotten older I realise it’s more than just a pretty building.

“It was at the heart of the industrial revolution and the catalyst to Bradford’s accruement of wealth.

“Not being used for wool trade since the 1970s it now hosts a beautiful bookstore in Waterstones, and other local amenities.

“To me it symbolises a callback to our roots as a settlement town, and really instils civic pride to see how far we’ve come.

“We talk about our current markets and what we miss about them, but back then there was certainly no Amazon Prime or online shopping. So to imagine the chaos of walking around that building in its peak is quite crazy really!

“Oh, and me thinking it’s a pretty place? So did Historic England by categorising it as a Grade-I listed building…”