BUSINESSES on Hexham's Hallstile Bank have hailed the reopening of the footpath as "miraculous" as they brace for the busy winter trading period.
A Christmas miracle has come early for traders on the town centre bank, who are rejoicing after Monday's (October 12) partial removal of scaffolding, reopening the path and restoring level access to the shops.
While the road remains closed to vehicles, it marks the beginning of the end of a long and drawn-out saga for the businesses, some of which have reported drops in customer numbers after the July 2025 collapse of Hexham Ex-Servicemen's Club's chimney.
A spokesperson for Northumberland County Council welcomed progress on the site and said building work was expected to be completed in the coming weeks, allowing the road to reopen.
Alison Smith, owner of Matthias Winter, said it had been "a tough time for a long time" and "very disruptive for over a year" but that "traders have displayed true resilience" and "things are now looking up".
"The work on the roof had looked close to finishing for some time, but we didn't expect it to be completed quite so quickly in the end," said Alison.
"It was over a year before the works got started, and we were told it could take up to 20 weeks to complete, which would have taken us right up to Christmas and could potentially have made a big dent on our Christmas trade like it did last year with there being no flat footpath access.
"To get the footpath open now when the Christmas run-up isn't properly underway yet feels quite miraculous."
The collapse damaged the adjacent building, which was occupied by Bob's Barbers and Project Escape. The former announced its permanent relocation to premises on St Mary's Chare in January, while the latter has remained closed since the 2025 incident.
The Ex-Servicemen's Club later went into liquidation, with its Hallstile Bank premises subsequently sold to new owners, Auld Joe's Limited.
One of the most affected was The Minerva Centre, a charity on the bank that provides students with learning difficulties a space to learn and practise art, which moved its main workshop to Burn Lane in April after reporting difficulties caused by the restricted access.
Jenny Brew, an administrator at the centre, said it was "marvellous" to see the path reopen and that students were "absolutely over the moon".
She said: "Our students will now be able to come up and do their bit in the shop because that's what they're missing.
"There are only a couple of them who have been able to make it into the shop because of the restricted access. It's not been safe for them.
"It's all completely changed now compared to this time last year, so we're hoping things are going to be a lot better."
Tynedale Craft Exchange, a dedicated space offering affordable craft supplies and creative workshops, has opened in the part of the building vacated by The Minerva Centre.
Business owner Heather Cook said the building work "looks amazing" and praised the contractors for a "really clean and quick job".
"We've not even been open a month yet," she said. "So we've got people that are really eager to come but can't get here.
"To have that open and be accessible is a huge thing."
Councillor Trevor Cessford said he was "delighted" the scaffolding was down and the path fully open, with work "ahead of schedule".
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