[WillowTheWhisp]

Are you confusing Glen Mills with Glyn Webb? Or have there been arson attacks on Glen Mills too?

CBS has had a closing down sale for a while now but that hasn't even been open all that long.

I'm afraid I am very cynical about small firms continued existence and the shock value went long ago. In some cases it's simply been that the owner has decided to retire with no-one to take over.

I was sorry to see the demise of the Stanhill pickle factory following a couple of take-overs and miss shops such as Wardleworths where you could actually order a book you'd heard of and they would send away for it for you.

Unfortunately it's no good bemoaning the loss of shops etc because the sad fact is that the majority of people prefer to shop at the larger out of town stores. If the small local shops were a commercial success they wouldn't be disappearing but how do you change that? There was a scheme a couple of years ago to try to encourage people to shop locally and collect points. Whatever happened to that?

We used to have a lot of local corner shops selling all manner of things but about the only ones which remain now are the off-licences. Yes of course I wish they were still there. It was a lot easier to pop round the corner for a few odd groceries than to have to go into town but sadly people must prefer to shop at the supermarkets because the local shops don't do enough business any more.

One small shop I do miss isn't even in Accrington and it wasn't all that small. It was a grocers/post office and the only shop in Crag Bank. Yet despite that fact it too is now gone and has been converted to a private residence because the local people must prefer to shop in the supermarkets.

It doesn't mean that I like the idea but it's just the way things are going and have been going for a long time. I don't see how the trend can be reversed.