'Struggling' Northampton traders believe the end is near for the town's historic market unless drastic changes are made

Northampton market traders believe the coming months could be the end of the town’s historic market unless drastic changes are made by the council.

Fruit and vegetable vendors Dave Dunkley and Mick Andreoli, and Nick from M&G Butchers have all heavily criticised West Northamptonshire Council’s (WNC) “lack of action” to help struggling traders at their temporary site in Commercial Street car park.

Dave Dunkley says that there was a meeting between WNC and traders nearly eight weeks ago to discuss problems and solutions, but says that nothing has come of it.

Dave said: "It’s getting worse and worse and worse down here. A lot of the traders are going by 2pm. We used to stay on Market Square until 5pm. It’s just appalling.

“We’re eight weeks down the line now since we had a meeting and nothing has been fed back to us. I think we’re being dumped here and that’s it, they’re going to forget about us.

“I’m speaking on behalf of the rest of the market traders, what’s happening? We’re all in the same boat. WNC is killing us. They are destroying this market. How is this going to get better? We are struggling here. We turn up six days a week to keep this market afloat and we’re getting nothing back at all.

“They need to move us, but nothing’s going to happen. I’m sorry to say, this town could lose its market, a market that has been here for hundreds and hundreds of years. It’s a sad day.

"They should have offered us compensation instead of spending what they did on this and told us to come back in two years when the market was finished.”

Nick the butcher, who has been trading from the family-run M&G Butchers van for 20 years, has zero hope the situation will improve.

He said: “We’re not getting any help. We’ve just been forgotten, pushed out the way. Nothing’s going to change, it won’t get any better, we need something to happen quick. It’s terrible. None of us are going to last down here in the next month or two, tops.

“They don’t want us here. They don’t want us back on the market. We have been forgotten about. We’re a market town but I don’t think WNC wants a market, they want a seating area and some tea and coffee places.

“It’s terrible. Absolutely disgusting. I’m so annoyed. This is all of our livelihoods being taken for granted here. We’re 70 per cent down. We’ve all got mortgages and families. I never thought it would come to this.

“If it carries on we won’t have a choice but to shut. If it carries on like this we will be the next to go. We’ve been market traders since 1967. We’ve been pushed aside. Absolutely disgusting.”

Mick Andreoli, who has been trading on the market for 58 years, was also heavily critical of the council.

He said: “Why don’t they just fix the town. The town is a mess. They (WNC) should fix their brains before they fix the Market Square.

“The whole situation is a joke. You just can’t trade down here. It’s not just the market I’m upset about, it’s the town, the town I grew up in. A load of idiots have destroyed it.”

WNC response

A WNC spokesman said: “A meeting between market traders and representatives of WNC was held on April 3, as a part of ongoing discussions, to discuss the current temporary relocation to Commercial Street Car Park. During this, concerns were raised about a drop in footfall and WNC committed to preparing a detailed report to consider alternative locations and further considerations.

“WNC has been speaking with other partners within the town centre to explore alternative and viable options, in addition to the pre-planning work which took place last year to seek alternative suitable locations.

“WNC will feedback to traders at the follow up meeting, taking place on May 22. The meeting date and feedback process has been communicated with traders and they have been kept informed on this process.

“During this time, traders continue to communicate with WNC through established channels. We are committed to working with traders to find the right solution to ensure our town has a thriving market.

“WNC continues to work with traders during the relocation at Commercial Street to provide free rent, utilities and welfare facilities, as well as ongoing promotion of the market’s relocation. We are aware of plans to offer free car parking to the north of Commercial St which we hope will have a positive impact on the footfall in that area; we are working closely with the contractors to discuss opportunities to work together on this for the benefit of our market.

"We remain committed to working with traders throughout this time to ensure a thriving market.”