TRADERS slammed proposals for a quarter-of-a-million pound makeover of Accrington's main shopping street as they were unveiled for the first time in public.

The leader of Hyndburn Council was forced to defend plans to give Broadway a facelift during a meeting of the Town Centre Regeneration Board.

The plans were revealed publicly for the first time since the Lancashire Evening Telegraph exclusively printed images of the proposals, and town traders criticised them for not doing enough to link shops with the market.

The chair of the town's market tenants association claimed the scheme will not do enough to keep shoppers moving around the street, and stopping at stores on each side of Broadway.

Neville Singer said: "Broadway needs something doing with it, there is no argument with that.

"But there is nothing in that scheme that I can see that is going to make people walk from one side to the other side.

"Somehow, Broadway doesn't bring the shops and the market together, it separates them out. We have talked several times about putting shops, or kiosks, in the middle to make people walk in and out.

"This is the same type of scheme towns were bringing in 30 years ago."

But council leader Peter Britcliffe denied the claims, and said the plans were hoping to introduce a coffee shop into the centre of Broadway, which would help.

He said the plans, likely to be started before next summer, were the first phase in Broadway's regeneration, which could be added to in the future.

The council are hoping to raise the money from either borrowing funds, or from the sale of council-owned assets, which could include buildings or wasteland.

Coun Britcliffe said: "That is not the case at all. What we have is quite a modern scheme using quite modern street furniture.

"There are tremendous demands from the public to do something about Broadway as it is now, because it is considered to be a major eyesore and a blight on the town centre.

"But officers also come to see me to say we haven't any money to spend. What we have got to do is look at something aesthetically pleasing but affordable."

The board passed the plans, and agreed to set up a working group to look at making any changes that were necessary.