Anti-terror barriers appear on Fargate as Sheffield Christmas Markets open

Sheffield Christmas Markets opened this morning at 10am and will run until Christmas Eve.

There will be more than 50 cabins selling a whole host of festive treats, opening until 6pm Sunday to Thursday and 8pm Friday and Saturday.

It will be the first time in six years that the Sleigh Bar will not be at the market but a new Alpine Bar will be taking its place.

The new Alpine Bar also opened at 10am and will remain open for 12 hours a day until 10pm, every day until Christmas Eve.

Excited children will also get to meet Father Christmas himself at Santa’s Grotto, where youngsters will receive a gift and be given the opportunity to take photographs with the big man himself.

THOR’s Tipi Bar will also return to the Peace Gardens with bosses promising it will be the best and biggest one yet.

The bar will open their doors to Christmas shoppers on Friday, November 22 until January 5, 2020.

Popular attraction, the Big Wheel will also return – giving shoppers the opportunity for a bit of festive excitement.

As in previous years, security barriers have been placed around Sheffield Christma Markets as a safety precaution.

Authorities continue to take security measures at festive events in the wake of a series of terror acts across Europe.

This includes the attack on Berlin’s Christmas Market in 2016 which saw 12 people killed and 56 injured.

Earlier this month, the UK terror threat level was downgraded from severe to substantial for the first time in five years.

Last year, four giant pellet stacks blocked the entrance of Sheffield Christmas Markets to vehicles while in 2017 a fire engine was parked at the top of the street.

South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service (SYFR) said that firefighters are out in the area, meeting shoppers and supporting police.

A SYFR spokesperson tweeted: "Proud to be out in #Sheffield again today, meeting shoppers and supporting @syptweet in providing reassurance to the public."