The December event was the last of four 'Friday' food extravaganzas trialled as part of a pilot project on Ashton Market Square.

The first three 'Fridays on the Square' staged in September, October and November had proved a huge success, attracting large crowds and many stalls offering food and drink, alongside music and entertainment, as the event appeared to be building in popularity.

But festive fun-seekers were left disappointed by December's offering, after discovering that there were less than half of the stalls at the event than there were in previous months. 

Attendees took to social media to express their thoughts, with some stating, "It’s extremely disappointing" and "It’s a very poor turn out", and one commenter branding it an "absolute shambles".

A Tameside Council spokesperson said, “Due to the cold weather, the outside offer was scaled back, and the indoor offer was increased. There were three food traders open in the indoor market and two food vendors outside, as well as a Prosecco bar and local businesses around the square stayed open and offered a range of refreshments and hot drinks. There were also the usual craft activities for anyone wanting to make a festive card.

"Although the event was set out differently to previous events, there was still a range of food and drink for customers to pick from to support the full programme of entertainment on the stage, including Jaeger Maestro’s and the Tap-Dancing Turkeys and the National ELF Service.  All of the traders who attended the December event were Tameside-based, which was a key ambition of the UKSPF funded pilot programme.”

The events were trialed in the town centre and funded by the government’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) for Communities and Place.