The market in Shenley Road, Borehamwood, has become an important part of community life in the area, bringing extra custom to the town on Tuesdays and Saturdays.

However, the market has not always been at the centre of town, and was originally based on the grounds of Boreham Wood Football Club, in Broughinge Road.

It was first set up in 1983 after overcoming opposition from the Chamber of Commerce and some shopkeepers, who feared that it might detract from other shopping areas in the town.

Bill O’Neill, former chairman of the football club, is quite frank about his reasons for hitting upon the idea of a market in 1982.

“Money. Income to help us run the club,” he said.

He believes it also supplemented the goods available in Borehamwood’s shopping areas.

He said: “You couldn’t buy a pair of knickers in Borehamwood high street. There were very few shops.”

The market opened on May 25, 1983, for a six-month trial period. It went on to operate every Thursday for nine years, offering between 50 and 80 stalls during that time.

Mr O’Neill has fond memories of the traders.

He said: “Every day something happened. Every market stall holder’s a character in their own right.”

The market eventually closed in 1992 following a drop in popularity and a change of management.

Mr O’Neill said: “It just never made enough because we were off the beaten track. People had to walk down there. We weren’t near enough to Borehamwood for lunchtime trade from the factories, as there wasn’t enough time to get down there and back again.”

However in 1990, the manager of the market at the football ground, Steve Daly, had been invited to apply for planning permission to open the market at another site in the town centre. These negotiations collapsed when Mr Daly passed away, but four years later the market eventually opened in Shenley Road.

Edwin Nelken, chairman of Hertsmere Chamber of Trade, said: “There was a lot of demand for a market in Shenley Road.

“People were not going to the football club and people preferred to go to a market while they were shopping in Shenley Road.

“There was always a need for a market because people feel there’s a vibrancy, the prices are lower and there’s a different variety of produce.

“It brought customers into the area who may have gone to other places like Watford or St Albans.”

The market originally covered both sides of the street but the flow of traffic made this difficult to sustain, so it was reduced to 54 stalls on one side of Shenley Road, running twice weekly on Tuesday and Saturday.

Mr Nelken added: “The market has contracted to just one side but it is still very busy.”

Despite spanning a period of 25 years, the main stalls in the markets at the football ground and in Shenley Road have remained similar, selling a range of goods from fruit, vegetables and meat to clothes and other essential items.

Andrew Leicester, 45, from Edgware, who runs the jewellery stall, said: “The olive stalls come and go, but the established stalls — the fashion stalls, the jewellery stalls, the card stalls — are here year in, year out.”

Many markets have suffered from competition with low-priced fashion shops and supermarkets, but trader Steve Johnson, 44, from East London, believes this trend has reversed in Borehamwood.

He said: “Fruit and veg had it hard for a lot of years, but that’s come back.

“Butchers had it hard for a lot of years, but they’re starting to come back again because customers are realising the supermarkets’ meat isn’t as good.”

Although traders say the Shenley Road market has faced a downturn in trade in recent months, its history proves that it has already survived a difficult beginning.

Mr Nelken looks towards the future of the market.

He said: “It would be nice to have even more traders.

“It would actually be very nice if some organisation would do a French market, or a farmers’ market once every three months would be a great idea.”