DARLINGTON joined more than 1,000 towns across the country to highlight the value of local markets.

On Saturday, the town centre was awash with dozens of stalls selling everything from hand-made gifts to music and artwork.

The event was in celebration of the national Love Your Local Market campaign which runs nationally to encourage towns to shine a spotlight on their markets.

Heavy showers may have made the town a little quieter than organisers would have hoped for, but there was still an impressive array of market stalls to browse through and entertainment to enjoy.

Lucky competition winners were also given a free tour up Darlington’s 152-year-old Clock Tower to get an extra special bird’s eye view of the town.

Nick Wallis, Darlington Borough Council’s cabinet member for leisure, said: “Love your Local Market has been a popular campaign for a number of years and I am delighted to see our markets getting involved again.”

The Love Your Local Market campaign is led by the National Association of British Market Authorities, with support from the wider markets industry and the Government.