A popular digital network for local businesses will not be closing after all.

St Albans Businesses Facebook (SAB) page has nearly 4,000 members and is regularly visited by independent enterprises looking to establish themselves in the community.

Admins of the page, from The Business Community, recently announced they would close the page tomorrow and instead run a paid alternative.

They suggested current group members sign up for the other page by paying a subscription of £18 a month or £199 a year and becoming an official SAB member.

£5 of that monthly fee goes to Home-Start Herts - a charity supporting families to raise their children.

However, there was some backlash on the Facebook group, with some businesspeople questioning the plans.

Owner of The Business Community, Sue Wybrow, said: “We listened to what people were saying and they were saying they really wanted to keep it going.

“What we are going to do is, it will be more about telling people about our members and the businesses we have here in St Albans.”

The other group will remain as a support network for paying customers.

“We will be sharing successes and what the businesses are up to in St Albans, because I think people need to know who we are behind it all.”

She described the change as an evolution.