The loss of 85 jobs at an engineering firm is the latest in a series of knocks a former North-East mining village has suffered over the years. David Roberts spoke to residents who have views about how this latest setback will affect the village.

What's closing now? asks one customer in the Lateshopper store in Evenwood, County Durham, as he pays for his copy of The Northern Echo.

The newspaper has just announced the loss of 85 jobs at engineering firm Eliza Tinsley from its base in the small Teesdale village.

"That's great timing," he mutters when told that a third of the workforce is being laid off a week before Christmas at Evenwood Engineering, as the firm is still called in the village.

A lot of work has gone from Evenwood over the years.

The Randolph Colliery, which was once one of the biggest pits in the south Durham coalfield, closed in 1960, and the adjoining cokeworks closed in 1984.

Even the village football team, which played in the village for more than 70 years, upped sticks this year and moved to Spennymoor.

For many, this latest announcement could not have come at a worse time.

"I know one lad who's just bought a house and took on a mortgage," says Wendy Swords, who runs the Lateshopper with Mike Barnes.

"A lot of them are local, there's some that have been there 30 years and also a lot of lads who've gone there straight from school.

"It's very worrying for them - and just before Christmas.

"The thing is as well, a lot of these people don't have cars, they're just young lads who live in the village and walk to work.

"Even if they do find work elsewhere, they've now got to find transport."

Mr Barnes adds: "I think it's going to affect us as well. We get a lot of business from the workers there coming in for newspapers and food.

"They're part of a company based in Birmingham and it would have been better if they could have sent some work from there. Bigger places can absorb job losses better."

The job losses are one of the main topics of conversation at the Travellers Rest, in the village.

However, everyone is in agreement that the jobs will not affect the spirit of the community.

Jim Stephenson, who worked for the company for 20 years, says: "It's bound to have some sort of an impact when there's that amount of people involved and jobs are hard to find.

"But the firm is not really part of Evenwood. A lot of people drive there from elsewhere - it's not like if CA Roofing was to go, or Glaxo, in Barnard Castle."

Amy Robson, who runs the village post office, says: "It's really sad, as everyone thought they were doing quite well. A lot of people have only just found out and it's come as a surprise for a small place like Evenwood."

Local councillor Raymond Gibson, who has lived in Evenwood all his life, says: "It's a shock, as it's only been a year since there was talk of them expanding. But this is going on all over the country.

"It's not something that's going to affect only Evenwood, but all over, as a lot of the workforce commute here."

One worker at the factory, who asked not to be named, said: "It's pretty dormant in there at the minute - everyone's just sitting waiting.

"We've been told we'll know by December 5 who's going. We had hoped it would have been sooner, so it's quite a strained atmosphere at the moment."