As Tŷ Pawb progresses through our 8th year since opening, we have the opportunity to reimagine our spaces, and respond to the evolving needs of our audiences and local context.
With this in mind, we are in the process of opening up our market hall, removing 3 permanent market stalls, in order to create a new flexible space which can accommodate a range of activities at different times:
- Specialist and pop-up markets
- Additional food court seating
- Playful and engaging space for children and their adults
As part of bringing this new space to life, we are offering two design commission opportunities. See below.
The building work and design commission opportunities have been made possible thanks to £42,000 provided by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
Please note:
The deadline for expressions of interest is midnight on 26th September 2025.
We will notify applicants about the outcome of expressions of interest by Tuesday 30th Sep.
Shortlisted applicants will be invited to interviews which will take place on Friday 3rd October online.
Design Commission Opportunity 1: Play Kit – £10,000
Play is a significant theme running throughout Ty Pawb’s creative programming. We collaborate closely with the local playwork sector including Wrexham’s adventure playgrounds, and we champion play as a cultural practice. We take seriously our responsibility to contribute to Play Sufficiency for children in Wrexham, in line with Wales’ world leading policy to protect children’s right to play.
In 2019 and 2023 Ty Pawb presented major exhibitions foregrounding play, adventure playgrounds, and children’s agency; and since 2019, Tŷ Pawb has hosted weekly creative playwork sessions for children in the Useful Art Space. We work regularly with artists for whom play and co-production with children are central to their practice.
Building on the success of this long term work and ethos, Tŷ Pawb is now seeking expressions of interest from artists/ designers/ makers / creative team, for a new commission that will help us expand playful activity into the market hall.
Brief
- We are seeking a new and innovative kit of play structures / interactive sculptures / loose parts / objects. These must be broadly suitable for children aged 0 – 10 approx. under adult supervision, taking into account neurodiversity and disability access.
- The play kit will mainly be used within the soon-to-be-created flexible space within our market hall (area approx. 6m x 9x) The area has a concrete floor, so this must be taken into consideration in terms of materiality of structures, and any potential fall height.
- We are not stipulating a specific kind of play that should be suggested by the kit (e.g small world, role play, sensory, gross motor activities etc), rather we are looking for creative responses to this brief, which take into account the very specific context of the market hall.
- The play kit needs to be visually enticing, to enhance the market hall environment. This is a big space and therefore scale should be considered in order to ensure visual impact.
- We would like the play kit to be bespoke, to be designed and made as a bespoke kit for Ty Pawb, but we are open to the inclusion of some readymade items if these complement the overall set.
- We will have some large sheets of pine wood from the market stalls which are being removed to create the new flexible space, these will be available and we encourage proposals to incorporate some repurposing of this wood.
- The play kit will sometimes need to be in storage while the flexible space is used for its other purposes (pop-up markets and food court seating). As such ease of carrying and storing the play kit should be considered.
- All elements of the play kit must be safe for children to play with, without sustaining injuries. The kit must be durable enough to withstand children’s play, within reason. Tŷ Pawb will work with the commissioned individual or team on context specific risk assessment.
- The play kit will need to be designed with drop-in access in mind i.e. there will not always be Ty Pawb staff supervising, although parents/carers will be required to remain with their children.
- Once an individual or team have been appointed to undertake this commission, they will need to undertake at least one consultation session at Ty Pawb, with stakeholders including children/families and market traders.
- The commission needs to be complete by the end of February 2026.
- The value of this commission is £10,000, inclusive of travel, materials and all other associated costs.
How to apply
To submit an expression of interest please send:
- A written document, no more than 500 words, outlining your approach to this commission. We are not expecting full detail here, but we would like to understand your thinking around materiality, access, practicality, and visual impact. Alternatively this can be provided as a video or audio recording of no more than 5 minutes.
- A cv or similar, documenting your relevant skills and experience. Alternatively this can be provided as a video or audio recording of no more than 5 minutes.
- Up to 10 relevant images – these can be of your own work, and / or examples of other projects which help illustrate your approach.
- Please confirm within your email, that you are available for interview on Friday 3rd October, and that you are able to work within the required timescale for project completion, which is by end of February 2026.
These should be sent via email to typawb@wrexham.gov.uk with subject line ‘PLAY KIT’.
The deadline for expressions of interest is midnight on 26th September 2025.
We will notify applicants about the outcome of expressions of interest by Tuesday 30th Sep
Shortlisted applicants will be invited to interviews which will take place on Friday 3rd October online.
Design Commission Opportunity 2: Tables & Seating
Tŷ Pawb’s market hall includes a range of permanent stalls selling a range of products including wool, sweets, craft supplies, Welsh language gifts and bespoke illustrations; and the food court is a gathering place for Wrexham residents and visitors alike.
As the market trade context in Wrexham develops – with for example with recent renovation of the Butcher’s and General Markets – we are revisiting the needs and uses of Ty Pawb’s market hall. We know that there is increased demand for pop-up and specialist stalls; that our customers would like the option to sit at smaller tables, as well as our existing communal tables; and that craft groups benefit greatly from meeting in our food court.
With all of this in mind, Tŷ Pawb is now seeking expressions of interest from artists/ designers/ makers / creative teams, for a new commission that will help us expand our capacity to host visitors, groups and pop-up market stalls.
Brief
- We are seeking to commission a new set of tables and seating, which will be used within the soon-to-be-created flexible space within our market hall / food court (area approx. 6m x 9x).
- As a minimum we are looking for 4 x tables which seat 4 people and 2 x tables which seat 2 people; along with 20 chairs / seats.
- The tables need to be modular, to maximise their functionality e.g. if required to combine into a larger configuration for a group meeting
- We are looking for tables which are multi-use i.e. suitable for use as pop-up market stall, and as seating for visitors. These need to have disability access in mind. We are open to the inclusion of elements such as lower table – coffee table height – or table/s for children and families.
- We are keen to see creative suggestions about how these and other potential elements could work within the space.
- The furniture needs to be sympathetic to the existing aesthetic of the food court furniture, as well as being robust enough for long term use in the public space.
- The tables and seating will sometimes need to be in storage while the flexible space is used for other purposes (play space, performance etc). As such ease of carrying and storing the furniture should be considered.
- Once an individual or team have been appointed to undertake this commission, they will need to undertake at least one consultation session at Ty Pawb, with stakeholders including children/families and market traders.
- We would like the furniture to be designed and made bespoke for Ty Pawb, but we are open to the inclusion of some readymade items if these complement the overall space and help to achieve affordability.
- Once an individual or team have been appointed to undertake this commission, they will need to undertake at least one consultation session at Ty Pawb, with stakeholders including visitors and market traders.
- The commission needs to be complete by the end of February 2026.
- The value of this commission is £14,250,000, inclusive of travel, materials and all other associated costs.
How to apply
To submit an expression of interest please send:
- A written document, no more than 500 words, outlining your approach to this commission. We are not expecting full detail here, but we would like to understand your thinking around materiality, access, practicality, and visual impact. Alternatively this can be provided as a video or audio recording of no more than 5 minutes.
- A cv or similar, documenting your relevant skills and experience. Alternatively this can be provided as a video or audio recording of no more than 5 minutes.
- Up to 10 relevant images – these can be of your own work, and / or examples of other projects which help illustrate your approach.
- Please confirm within your email, that you are available for interview on Friday 3rd October, and that you are able to work within the required timescale for project completion, which is by end of February 2026.
These should be sent via email to typawb@wrexham.gov.uk with subject line ‘TABLES AND CHAIRS’.
The deadline for expressions of interest is midnight on 26th September 2025.
We will notify applicants about the outcome of expressions of interest by Tuesday 30th Sept.
Shortlisted applicants will be invited to interviews which will take place on Friday 3rd October.
Read the full press release for the project here