IT was a fixture on high streets across the country, the place you could turn if you wanted your passport photo sorting and a big bag of pick 'n' mix.

But now it has been 10 years this week since Woolworths, or Woolies as it was often more affectionately known, closed its doors on Church Street, St Helens and in Earlestown.

Woolies prior to the closure in 2008

The store – home to everything from toys to kitchen and dining equipment, gardening supplies and sweet treats – was one of the country's oldest chains.

But around Christmas 2008, it was announced it was laden with debt and at the time it collapsed it owed £385m.

The store has housed several discount shops over the past 10 years

Store closures across the country left 27,000 people out of a job at the start of 2009 and 815 empty stores on the high street.

More than 60 people lost jobs at the Hardshaw Centre store and 16 in Earlestown.

Looking back, it was a signal of the troubles that would follow for many big names of the high street as changing times and the rapid growth of online shopping hit town centres.

Since its closure in St Helens, the prominent Church Street store has had several guises as various budget stores.

But today it stands empty, a symbol of the fading strength of the traditional high street.

Were you a former Woolies employee? What did you do next?