Wendy Smith at Tadpole toyshop, which is closing Ref: 77316-4ANOTHER Highworth shop has bitten the dust raising fears over the future of small traders in the town.

The Tadpole toyshop is the latest store to be forced out of business by lack of trade, which has been blamed on the new Co-op supermarket.

Traders say the £4.5 million store, which opened two years ago in Brewery Street, has sucked shoppers out of the market square.

A picture framing shop, a newsagents, a saddlery and a needlework store have all shut recently.

Now the town council has announced a major new offensive to draw in more visitors.

Promoting the town as a tourist attraction is to be one of the council's main objectives over the next 12 months.

Deputy mayor Steve Weisinger said the town faces a bleak future unless urgent action is taken.

"Tourists do not realise what Highworth has to offer," he said.

"We need to erect brown tourist signs so when they drive through from Swindon or Lechlade they know we are a small town with things to offer.

The town has a lot of character and good pubs." Several traders have shut down in recent months, blaming the new Co-op.

And Coun Weisinger agrees. "It has drawn shoppers out of the centre," he said. "There they can buy everything under one roof.

"I'm not blaming the Co-op, it's just the way things are going."

When Wendy Smith opened Tadpole toyshop six years ago, Highworth had a bustling market square.

The 48-year-old mother-of-two, who lives in Highworth, said passing trade has dwindled since the Co-op opened.

"You just don't get people walking by," she said. "It is very noticeable, people just don't use the High Street anymore.

"We should have a thriving town centre and it's such a shame it's so quiet.

"The character of the town will really change if more shops close, but it's a fight to survive."

She now plans to develop the website side of her business, selling toys on-line.

Co-op spokesman Adrian Barradell was sorry to hear about the closure

"We care very much about Highworth," he said.

"The Co-op store, with the library on the first floor, was developed in partnership with the local authority and we worked with them to build a store to benefit the town as a whole.

"We see the Co-op, which sells a limited range of non-food items, as part of Highworth's retail mix and we are sorry to hear that Tadpole is facing closure."