UK town ‘living in the Dark Ages’ with shops lucky to get customer past 1pm

A UK town which was once described as vibrant is now living in 'the Dark Ages' – where shops are lucky if they receive any business after midday.

The town of Eston in Teesside appears to be on the cusp of a forgettable period in its history, with the former mining town suffering from empty stores and a lack of recovery years on from the coronavirus pandemic.

Business owners in the area, speaking to TeessideLive, claim 'there's no point' in staying open after Christmas – with some confirming they will shutter their shops for good at the end of the year.

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Yvonne Haley, who runs Little Miracle Clothing, summarised the area as a place to get 'your nails done or pizza'. Not quite the booming high street it once was, but business owners have noticed a massive shift.

Business owner Yvonne added: "Since the Post Office closed, it’s amazing how much footfall we’ve lost. When it gets to 1pm I’ll be lucky if I have a customer. It’s been very quiet since the Post Office closed. There are no supermarkets and a café just closed too."

She says a butchers also closed and the area is now in a state of disrepair. Yvonne says the area has "never really recovered from Covid" and that "no one has got any money" to spend. Due to this, she plans on closing her shop as "there's just no point".

Eston resident Gina added: "There’s nothing much good about it (Eston). There’s only one bank but there used to be three. We could do with a little Aldi or a Tesco. Crime is very bad. There’s shoplifting and yobs on scooters, about eight went past me yesterday."

Crime appears to be a nuisance for the area also, with David Taylor, Conservative councillor for Eston, adding: "Like many areas in the North East, Eston does have its issues with crime and anti-social behaviour."

But there is some hope for reductions in the area, with Cllr. Taylor adding: "That said, having spoken to the Cleveland Police and Crime Commissioner, the latest figures show crime in the area has significantly reduced over the last six months with burglaries and ASB down and the number of people charged with shoplifting up."

Kevin McBride, a father-of-two living in the area, said: "This particular area is not that good. There aren’t enough shops for vegans and there are no supermarkets. I have to walk 30 minutes to Tesco in Normanby. We’re living in the Dark Ages around here."

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