London Borough of Lewisham signed up to the Real Deal national charter on Tuesday 28 May reconfirming the council’s commitment to safe and fair trading in council-run markets.

Lewisham’s Markets Service in conjunction with the Trading Standards Service, officially signed the charter in Lewisham Market and have pledged to continue to ensure that fake goods and other illicit items are not sold in any Council-run market in the borough.

Lewisham, Deptford, Douglas Way and Catford markets will soon display the Real Deal brand – which tells consumers that market officials and traders have signed up to a code of practice to ‘self-police’ the markets and take action if they spot anything suspicious.

In signing up to the Real Deal campaign, the Council will benefit by working in partnership with other local authorities, safer neighbourhood teams, traders, industry groups, and copyright and trademark owners – all of which are united by a common commitment to tackle the problem of fakes.

Cabinet Member for Customer Services, Councillor Susan Wise, said: “We are incredibly proud of the diversity and history of our markets. As we come to the end of our participation in Love Your Local Markets Fortnight, it’s especially important that we reiterate our commitment to our market-goers that they are getting the ‘real deal’ when they shop at a Lewisham Council-run market.

“Counterfeit goods can be dangerous and the proceeds are often used to fuel crime which can then affect individuals and damage communities. Lewisham is fully committed to the Real Deal scheme and will work hard with our partners and traders to make sure that all goods in Council-run markets in Lewisham are fake-free.”