South Gloucestershire Council are insisting the closure of Thornbury High Street is a 'real opportunity' for the town, despite growing opposition from residents and business owners.

The council has stated the closure will help give people the confidence to go shopping while traders will be able to make use of extra outdoor space.

However, the majority of business owners are strongly against the closure and noticed a drop in trade last week. One went as far to suggest the 'heart and soul' had been ripped out of the town.

Opinion among residents is less clear cut but in a poll on The Gazette's Facebook page 68 per cent said they were against the closure. A petition against the closure has also been set up.

Mark King, head of South Gloucestershire Council’s StreetCare team, said last week that there would be a review at the end of June but he wanted to see the trial run for the summer to ‘give it a good run and time to bed in’.

A spokesman for South Gloucestershire Council said: “As a council we have a statutory duty to make it as easy as possible to follow rules for social distancing in public places and we are working on several projects to make public space safer for everyone.

“This scheme will help to protect people from the virus and we hope it will boost confidence to use Thornbury High Street safely.

“This change is a real opportunity to boost the High Street and provides businesses with a chance to operate differently by installing outdoor seating areas or products outside their premises.

“We expect there will be more demand to use outdoor spaces for people queuing to access shops, cafes for seating and traders to use the space. Our aim is to create a welcoming destination for residents to take daily exercise and spend time there."

Asked whether other schemes, such as a one-way system, were considered instead of a full closure the spokesman added: “We considered a number of options and pedestrianising the High Street was by far the safest scheme which could be installed quickly both in terms of protecting pedestrians and cyclists from traffic but also, importantly, to provide space for everyone to social distance and reduce the spread of Covid-19.

"As the trial progresses we will continue to consider all options."