A RETAIL study has identified Middlewich as the weakest of the borough's towns.

And Northwich has been blamed for poaching all its trade.

The study, carried out by an independent company on behalf of Congleton Borough Council, involved telephoning 750 households to gather the relevant information.

It discovered that most residents see Middlewich as the poorest town and its close proximity to Northwich is considered to be a major contributory factor to its weak retail status.

Debbie Fifer, senior planning officer at Congleton Borough Council, described the findings of the study.

She said: "It accessed the health of Middlewich and the capacity for development in the future.

"Based on economic performance and a lack of demand from investors, it was found that Middlewich was perceived to be one of the weakest towns.

"The survey also showed that only one in five householders use the town for their main food shop, although 48% said they used it to top up their shopping.

"The problem is there is a lot of leakage of trade to Northwich and Crewe."

But Mrs Fifer revealed that there were some positive aspects to the report.

"The proportion of vacant floor space is fairly low," she explained. "And considering Middlewich is very small there is a good variety of shops."

The authority will now act on the results of the report. Mrs Fifer added: "We will not be looking to claw back business from Northwich. Instead we will be trying to improve the attractiveness of Middlewich to its residents and visitors."

Converted for the new archive on 13 March 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.