NEW and improved stores are needed to encourage ‘top of the town’ shoppers to the centre of Brierfield, councillors have said.

People living in the higher part of Brierfield rarely visit retailers in Colne Road and surrounding streets, an investigation by town councillors has discovered.

Now a masterplan has been drawn up by Brierfield Town Council in a bid to lure more shoppers away from the likes of Burnley and Nelson, and spend their money locally.

Coun Florence Tomlinson said: “We need to encourage more people to use the town centre.

“Those people who live at the top end of Brierfield do not seem to be coming into the centre at all.

“So we need some good shops to encourage them down.

“For instance there is not one place where you can buy white goods.

“You cannot get fridges or freezers and people tell me that this is partly because of the double yellow lines, and no proper loading areas.”

Coun Tomlinson said that the town centre already had an abundance of takeaways and food shops but that it had little choice for consumers.

The town council was also told that a lack of sufficient public transport, linking the top of Brierfield with the town centre, along Halifax Road, was another factor affecting trade.

Coun Keith Tomlinson also expressed concerns about the recent closure of the service station in Colne Road, saying that it now appeared to be ‘derelict’.

Town mayor Coun Mike Sutcliff said: “If we are going to talk about opening half a dozen new shops then we need to talk about transport links as well.”

Councillors agreed that regeneration agency Elevate should be lobbied to see, as part of redevelopment plans for Railway Street, whether several shops there could be persuaded to move to a more central location.

The masterplan will be referred to Pendle Council's Brierfield and Reedley area committee for further debate.