Burslem's lost so much more than just its banks

THERE was a time when someone could walk into any of Burslem's six banks and turn around with sufficient cash in his pocket for an afternoon's revelry in the town's shops and pubs.

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That can't happen today because there are no banks in Burslem and hardly any trading places, and what few pubs remain cater chiefly for evening trade. Banks these days seem to be there for advice or to handle small amounts of deposits, and their architectural imagery of strength and reassurance lies dilapidated or converted into a Wetherspoons boozer.

Sixty years ago, through the last decades of the 20th century, banks were an important part of a town's economic and social life. In industrial towns, they existed primarily on the success of manufacture, and in Burslem this was driven by the potteries. Aside from the profusion of potbanks in Burslem's entire district, there were eight major manufacturing works directly positioned inside the town centre. Some of these, Royal Doulton, Wades, Steventon's, and Barratts, were Burslem's principal employers, and it was this immeasurable workforce that energised the town's daytime activity.