On 23 October 2013, FACT (the Federation Against Copyright Theft) presented special commendation awards to Manchester City Council’s Market Manager, Tony Sproston, and Trading Standards Officer, Nicola Bray. The awards were made in recognition of exemplary standards in tackling intellectual property crime.
In November 2009, Manchester City Council was the first local authority in the UK to introduce the Real Deal Charter at all the city’s council-run markets and it is now part of the city’s licence agreement for all new market applications.