Traders at a 700 year old market in Merseyside consider themselves a "dying breed".
Earlestown market has been one of the sparks keeping the small town alive in recent years, with people flocking into the historic town square every Friday morning. The market is among the oldest in the country, with roots that can be traced back over 700 years.
As the local economy struggles for a variety of reasons, the toll has began to be felt by traders, some of whom believe the market is set to die out in the near future. The ECHO headed down on a Friday morning to catch up with stall holders.
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Dougie Fleming has held his stall on the market for 23 years, as well as travelling to other markets across the north west to make a living. He told the ECHO: "I'm 60 years old, and if you look around, I'm one of the youngest traders on the market. The younger ones don't want to come pitch up and five in the morning, braving rain or snow, and that's where the markets will end.
"We're a dying breed, supermarkets and online shopping mean people are unlikely to come out to a market. Younger people especially aren't going to come to a market, it used to be a lot busier, we'd have adverts in the local press and everything."
Lynne Richardson, who has been on her stall for 15 years, is concerned about the future of the market and the strains on traders. She said: "On the car boot day, on Saturdays, there would be a queue from five in the morning for people to pitch up and sell, you could hardly move. Now the rules have been changed so that you have to book on to get your pitch and it's really killed it off.
"We need to bring in more footfall, a lot of the plans that people have for the market are to make it look all nice and pretty, with grass verges and trees- but pretty doesn't bring money. We need more support."
St Helens Borough Council's "masterplan" of regeneration aims to completely overhaul Earlestown town centre, including the market. This includes the demolition of buildings at the corner of Market Square and Stanley Street, with outline plans to build a market canopy over a section of Market Square alongside Haydock Street together with new retail kiosks adjacent to Wilko's on Market Street.
Councillor Richard McCauley, Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Planning, said: "When we unveiled the plans last year we were keen to make sure that action followed our ambitions and this planning approval is a sign of our intent to deliver on our masterplan. It's the first major planning permission approval after the adoption of our Local Plan which sets out our development plans for the next 25 years and will contribute significant regeneration of Earlestown and support a sustainable future for the historic market.
"We'll now continue our work with ECF and the local community on the detailed designs for Earlestown town centre to secure their earliest delivery. We will also continue to look at wider developments that benefit the area, including the restoration of the Grade II listed Earlestown Town Hall to reopen its doors to the public as a vibrant space with a variety of uses. The future for Earlestown is certainly bright."
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