Locals fear their town is dying with shops closing doors and customers “too scared” to visit.

       St Austell in Cornwall will see its New Look shut next month as the high street fashion brand reveals over 360 of its UK stores are at risk of closure.

       A New Look spokesperson said they have to close stores “on occasion”, either due to the landlord's request or because the site becomes unviable.

       But residents are worried this is the writing on the wall for their small town with only a few shops left to visit in the centre.

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       There are several pubs but few large retailers - with only TK Maxx, Superdrug, Trespass, CEX, Poundland and HM Samuel in the centre. And within the last couple of years, Boots and Wilko have also shut their doors.

       Tourism is important to the local economy with visitors drawn to nearby beaches and tourist attractions such as the Eden Project, the Lost Gardens of Heligan, and the China Clay Country Park.

       One CornwallLive reader said St Austell is going “the same way as so many high streets”. They added: “We need free parking in all high streets for at least two hours. It used to be that way in Callington until they charged, then the town simply died from lack of shoppers.”

       Another agreed, saying people are now “too scared” to go into the town centre: “It’s actually quite sad to see the sorry state of St Austell over the last 20 years or so, its decline is quite alarming - the town is dying.

       “I remember growing up in the ‘70s and ‘80s when St Austell town was a buzzing hive of shops and customers. It's a mixture of high rents and the fact customers have just become too scared to shop there for fear of being pestered by beggars.

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       “We used to have a town to be proud of, but I am actually ashamed now to go there.”

       One local said New Look’s closure was “another sign of St Austell’s death-knell”, saying: “There are so many empty shops, so much neglect and decline. Nothing there to draw any footfall.

       “The white 'elephant' shopping centre was a disaster from the start. I pity any businesses trying to make ends meet in the town now. Turn it all into flats as there is no point in having shops with no customers.”

       Another said that he would always be in St Austell when he was young, but over the last 40 years it “has got so bad” like “other places in Cornwall and all over the country”.

       One CornwallLive reader pointed out that part of the blame is perhaps with locals who do not support their town centre. She said: ““I buy most of my goods online and yet I moan about the high street disappearing.

       “None of us should moan really, if it's not used it disappears, that's progress. Things change as time goes on, the pub is on its last legs after a few hundred years.”

       Another noted that now, the only place for people to have a day out is in Truro, 30 minutes away, and Plymouth, an hour away.