Further details have emerged for plans for this year’s Christmas market in King’s Lynn, which it is hoped could be a "magnet" for shoppers.

At a Tuesday meeting of the borough council’s regeneration and development panel, Vicky Etheridge, manager of the town’s business improvement district (BID), said the market would be held in the vacant Argos unit on December 11 and 12.

While Ms Etheridge admitted the unit “doesn’t look particularly nice,” she said it was “slap-bang in the middle of the town centre”.

%image(14410429, type="article-full", alt="King's Lynn BID manager Vicky Etheridge Picture: Matthew Usher")

She added: “I think footfall and where people naturally go is really key to any market. It makes it a lot easier to sell or promote an event if you’ve got it in a very central location with natural footfall, so that’s one of the appeals.”

Unpredictable weather was another concern, she said.

“While outside markets are lovely, unless you’ve got quite robust shelters to put people underneath, especially with Christmas when you’ve got a fixed date and if the weather means you can’t have it outside you’re a bit stuck.”

She said the market would be “a magnet” bringing people into King’s Lynn, who would spend their money across the town’s businesses - as well as its car parks, by staying longer.

But Conservative councillor Lesley Bambridge said she had concerns over the choice of venue.

%image(14377275, type="article-full", alt="Conservative councillor Lesley Bambridge")

She said she thought it was "uninviting" and that it would need to be checked for rats before it is opened as a market which may serve food.

Ms Etheridge said: “We will make it look as inviting as possible. We’ve got plans to improve [it] and make it look Christmassy, so I think we can do that, I think we can make it look inviting and sort out any other issues with that.”

%image(14419072, type="article-full", alt="Panel chair Judith Collingham said the bridge could be "an aspiration for the future".")

Conservative panel chair Judith Collingham said she shared the reservations about the venue but that the market was “urgently needed”.

Ms Etheridge said the BID had more than 30 stalls lined up, most of which had traded in the town before, ranging from food, drink, jewellery and gifts.

She added that they would be appropriately priced for the town.