LOCALS in a town struggling to get by say they earn just a POUND a day.
Dudley, in the West Midlands, has struggled amid a backdrop of under investment and a tumultuous economic climate.
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And with essential shops shuttering to make way for “charity and betting” units, traders say they are on the brink.
One market seller flogging Pokemon toys on the high street told BirminghamLive: “One day you can go home with one pound and on another day £30.
“It depends.”
Dudley sits six miles south east of Wolverhampton and eight miles north west of Birmingham.
Once famed for its iron, coal and limestone production during the Industrial Revolution, Dudley has fallen on hard times.
In 2021, the Black Country town had 35.6 percent of kids living in poverty, according to figures from the West Midlands Violence Reduction Unit.
That equates to around 22,100 children living below the breadline in a town of 80,000.
On the towns high street, the outdoor market – rebuilt in 2014 at a cost of £6.7m – is also struggling.
Clothes stallholder Ahmed Zahoor, 62, has run his stool for a year – but admitted trade was slow.
He suggested: “If you look in Dudley, there’s no decent shops. It’s all charity shops and betting shops.
“If you look at the High Street – just count them.”
While another punter said the town is doomed as shuttered businesses are never replaced.
She slammed: “There is nothing here.”
When approached by BirminghamLive about the reality of the High Street, Patrick Harley, leader of the town council, blamed the popularity of online shopping negatively impacting physical shops.
And he added: “There has been a hive of exciting activity, with the £31 million Duncan Edwards Leisure Centre, the £26 million Black Country Marches Institute and the £28 million Very Light Rail.
“Work for the £449 million Midland Metro extension is well underway.”
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