NWN-18062020

Thursday, June 18, 2020 3

NEWBURY NEWS

Newbury Weekly News

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Optician ScottWaters

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Town recovery begins as shoppers return Non-essential shops start to re-open for business this week

distancing guidelines, but they have been absolutely fantastic. “A lot of customers come back in just to say hello and see how we were, which is really nice.” Mr Waters said his company had taken a number of steps to ensure customers were safe, including sterilising glasses after use, sterilising the card machine between each transaction, ‘defog- ging rooms’ and operating a one- way system in the shop. West Berkshire Council has posted leaflets to more than 300 local businesses looking to open in the weeks to come, depending on Government guidance, outlin- ing what steps they would need to take to remain safe and what support is available to them. The council’s economic devel- opment manager Gabrielle Mancini said: “We are here to help. We have a team and resources in place. If businesses need to get in touch they can do that and we will do all we can to get them back on their feet.” n Shops reopen in Hungerford and Thatcham, see pages 21 and 25

SOME of Newbury’s town centre shops reopened this week for the first time in almost three months – but with strict guidelines in place to ensure both staff and customers are kept safe. A number of businesses opened on Monday and Tuesday, with the remainder set to follow suit in the coming days and weeks as the economy slowly starts to pick up following the Covid-19 outbreak. One-way systems, limiting the number of customers allowed in at any one time, hand sanitiser stations, plastic screens at tills and staff wearing personal protec- tive equipment are just some of the measures being put in place by stores. Signs reminding people to stay two metres apart and follow social distancing rules have also been placed around the town. And while it is now an alto- gether different shopping experi- ence than the one we were used to, it seems it hasn’t put too many off, with a steady stream of people going in during the week.

Speaking to the Newbury Weekly News on Monday, Parkway Shopping centre manager Andrew Marmot said: “We are really pleased with the way day one has gone so far. “We are very grateful that people, on the whole, are respect- ing the social distancing measures and we look forward to welcoming more people back as more retailers start to reopen.” Scott Waters, who owns Scott Waters Opticians in Northbrook Street, said: “We’ve had a really good first day back. We were a bit worried about whether everyone would adhere to the social Report by DAN COOPER email dan.cooper@newburynews.co.uk twitter @danc_nwn

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“ We look fowrard to welcoming more

people back as more retailers start to reopen

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Pub owner:‘Give clarity on 2m social distancin’g n Continued from front page Two years on, with The Dolphin now added to its portfolio, it is dealing with the fallout of Covid-19. He said: “The Novichok crisis was nowhere near as harsh as Covid-19, which could impact our busi- ness by 50 to 60 per cent or more as a result of social distancing. “The same principles apply now as they did then, it is about looking after staff and managing customer expectations. “However, this time it is a generational crisis, we’re all in the same boat. You can’t feel sorry for yourself; you’ve got to have a positive outlook.” Mr Turner’s two pubs have benefited from differ- ent levels of support since lockdown. In the case of The Old Ale & Coffee House, it received a Government grant, but The Dolphin’s rateable value was fractionally over the £51,000 ceiling so it didn’t receive anything. Mr Turner is confident that customers will come back, saying: “I think people will be desperate for a pint and to have someone to cook and wash up for them. “Initially I think there will be a surge of people and then trade will settle down with a more balanced trading period through the week. “It’s really important to ensure that people feel safe if they’re to come back again and for them to do that staff have to feel safe too.” Mr Turner made the decision to close his pubs on March 18 and furlough all staff except himself, focusing on the health and wellbeing of employees and preparing for a post-lockdown business. In preparation for re-opening, he has ordered multiple sanitisers, PPE for staff if they want it and is undertaking a risk assessment to see what might work, including if a one-way system is possible. To improve the operation of the business, all transactions will be cash-free and an app intro- duced with a loyalty scheme to boost trade. Tables will have to be booked in advance to ensure there aren’t queues and pre-orders will be required for large family groups.

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