MALMESBURY town council has come under fire for its handling of the introduction and eventual closure of the Sunday Market.

The town council decided to close the market amid concerns from High Street traders that their business was suffering.

This Sunday will be the market's last, just three months after opening.

The decision to close the market came only a month after the council voted unanimously that the market should continue after a six-week trial.

Criticism has now been levelled at the town council for its handling of the introduction of the market and its sudden closure.

Malmesbury Mayor Charles Vernon said a motion put forward to close the market at a meeting on November 11 received the majority vote and could not be ignored.

But county councillor John Thomson said the council should have consulted before making the decision.

He said: "Its closure is a knee jerk reaction and shows a lack of leadership and vision in the town council. The council has destroyed all the good work they did to get the market. I think it is a benefit to the community if it is run properly.

"Councillors needed to get out and talk to people before they decided to close it."

Market organiser, Landmark Markets, said an average of 5,000 people visited the market every week and heralded it an unprecedented success.

The firm has taken legal advice which, it said, confirmed that Landmark was contracted to run the market until December 28.

Its operations manager Karl Waldron said: "I have never seen anything so ludicrous in my life as the way the council has handled the market.

"We have £30,000 invested in the market and we still as yet have had no written notice confirming the closure. An authority must have continuity in decisions."

Mr Waldron said he would be meeting with market traders on Sunday to discuss whether to defy the council's decision.

News of the market's closure prompted an angry reaction from regulars last week.

David Forward, of Hobbes Close, has formed the Save our Sunday Market Committee. He said: "I think the council has taken the decision too soon. They should have postponed the decision and done more work by talking to stall holders and people and found out what the majority view actually is."

Initial discussions with Landmark Markets to bring a Sunday market to the town began in May, resulting in its start in September on a six-week trial.

The town council has attacked claims that it failed to take the effect of competition on the High Street into consideration.

A statement issued by the council said: "The evidence (of a decline in trade) is anecdotal and the protests have not been helped by, for example, a shopkeeper complaining that on one Monday trade was worse even when no competitor had been present that Sunday.

"We must do all we can to keep the wide variety of shops in Malmesbury but the problems they face are not unique to this town."

The council denied there had been a lack of consultation with traders.

It was decided at an open council meeting on July 8 that the Sunday market would probably begin in September although the final decision was delegated to the mayor and town clerk in the recess month of August, when there are no council meetings.

The council said the chamber of commerce raised no objection when told about the market.

Chamber chairman Alan Woodward said he was concerned that he only found out about the decision to run the market after it had been made.

He said the chamber was not anti-market and wanted to see an end to the bitter feud which had seen councillors banned from ASM Outfitters and Walker's the Butchers.

He said: "We wanted more consultation. There were a lot of problems that needed to be sorted but weren't addressed. We will be in discussions with council to decide how to move forward."