Steel workers, their families, and small businesses say their lives are on hold as the threat of significant job losses at Scunthorpe steelworks continues to hang over them. As part of a £1.25bn decarbonisation plan, British Steel would close the plant's two blast furnaces, replacing them with a greener electric arc furnace.
Trade unions said the move would result in 2000 redundancies in steel and iron making. The new Labour government said it would be working to safeguard jobs as part of its negotiations with British Steel, which also said it would support affected employees. Around a quarter of the workforce in Scunthorpe is employed in manufacturing - including 4000 at British Steel, according to North Lincolnshire Council.
And much of the private sector is involved in logistics and supply chains for the plant. That worries those in the hospitality and leisure industry, who depend on disposable incomes, including Stuart Ross, the owner of Ashby Bowl in Scunthorpe. Mr Ross said a lot of his customers were steel workers, or connected to the steel works in some way: "They're very worried.
People are coming up to retirement age and they don't know what is going to happen to them. "If they haven't got the money, they won't spend. That will be the entertainment industry, the leisure industry.
Everything, everything will be affected. "It could be a town killer." As Steve Barnes scooped fizzy cola bottles into a bag at his High Street sweet shop, he remembered what it was like to.