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Coronavirus: High Street Shops Preparing Ways to Reopen

30th April 2020

Trade figures have issued new social distancing guidelines for shops to prepare for any easing of the lockdown.

The British Retail Consortium and Usdaw's advice includes providing hand sanitiser for customers.

Helen Dickinson, the BRC's boss, said: "The safety and wellbeing of retail colleagues and customers remains the highest priority."

The industry body and the union issued the advice to non-food retailers, closely based on what is already happening in many food stores. Some suggestions include:

• limiting the number of people in-store at any one time
• encouraging customers to shop alone where possible
• scheduling deliveries to avoid crowding
• cleaning door handles, lift buttons and hand rails regularly
• using floor markings to remind customers to maintain a distance of 2m

Shops that were deemed "non-essential" have been shut since the government set out strict new measures to tackle the spread of coronavirus on 23 March.

Those allowed to trade under lockdown include supermarkets, pharmacies, newsagents and post offices.

Usdaw general secretary Paddy Lillis said that "Non-food retail should only start trading again when expert public health advice agrees.

"However, we need to be ready and we need to make sure that the proper preparations and measures are put in place."

Companies that had temporarily shut stores are starting to reopen amid lockdown measures, after introducing new social distancing controls.

Social Distancing in Retail Stores and Warehouses

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