Littlehampton charity shop outlines new safety measures in place as it prepares to reopen

The Scope Charity shop in High Street, Littlehampton, will be one the first 16 Scope shops to reopen its doors to the public.

A spokesman said the charity had seen its income ‘plummet’ during the pandemic.

Under normal trading conditions, Scope’s total number of shops generate £1.7-£1.9 million a month, but in April, with no shops open, the charity’s income was 85 per cent down on the same period in 2019.

The Littlehampton shop has potentially lost £24,000.00 from April 1 to June 11, 2020.

Scope’s priority as its shops reopen is the safety of staff, volunteers and customers, the spokesman said.

Shopping post-lockdown will be a different experience and new safety guidelines will be in place.

Scope is introducing social distancing, intensive shop cleaning, hand washing and imposing a 72-hour quarantine for all donations.

All shops will have sneeze screens in place at the till for added reassurance.

Scope’s staggered approach to reopening its network of 207 shops will be an opportunity to test and learn.

For the initial period, shops will be inviting one customer in at a time.

All customers will be expected to use the hand sanitiser before browsing and one-way systems will be in place where necessary, along with two-metre distancing markers on floors.

Anthony Moore, Manager of Scope charity shop in Littlehampton says: “It’s been a long time since we’ve been able to welcome our wonderful community through our doors and we’re all looking forward to seeing our customers once more.

“We’ve put stringent safety procedures in place to ensure the safety of our customers and colleagues.

“I am sure this will seem rather strange for many people to begin with and I hope customers will bear with us during this period.

“You can still find fabulous bargains and hidden treasure in our shop.

“If people wish to donate, they can either bring it along to our shop at 64 High Street and put it in the purple wheelie bin outside.

“Or they can see if there will be a driver in their area, by going onto the Scope website.

“If anyone has a few hours to spare and would like to consider volunteering, we’ll ensure you have PPE and are well supported.

“Please do drop in or call the shop for a chat.

“We’re a very friendly team and as long as you have a comfortable pair of shoes, you’ll thoroughly enjoy volunteering with Scope and will be helping to support disabled people.”

Scope shops raise vital funds for the charity to run its services for disabled people.

Since lockdown began in March, Scope’s helpline has seen an influx of calls from disabled people concerned about Coronavirus.

Scope’s online community has enabled thousands of disabled people, who might otherwise be feeling isolated, to connect with others.

The charity’s family support and employment services have had to set up remotely so we can continue to be there for the people that need us.

As many people have had more time at home for a declutter, Scope is hoping to turn the public’s donation bags into money for services that support disabled people and their families.

Each bag of donations is worth, on average, £20 to Scope.

This means that:

– 81 bags could enable Scope to run its Parent’s Connect service for one week

– 119 bags could enable Scope to run its Starting Line employment support service for one week

– 275 bags could enable Scope to run its Navigate parent support service of one week

– 340 bags could enable Scope to run the Online Community for one week

It’s not just Scope’s shops that have been affected by lockdown.

Street fundraising has been paused and challenge events cancelled.

Scope usually has a monthly income of just over £3 million, but that has dropped by at least 60 per cent.

Public support is needed now more than ever so that Scope can be there for disabled people and their families and deliver everyday equality

Mark Hodgkinson, Chief Executive of disability equality charity Scope says: “The lockdown has had a huge impact on our income at a time when disabled people need our services the most.

“It’s vital that we get our shops back serving their communities. Our ability to run services that support disabled people and their families relies on income from our charity shops.

“We hope that shoppers will return but we recognise that we have a responsibility to keep them safe.

“Our priority is to ensure the safety of our staff, volunteers and customers, which is why we are phasing the opening of all shops to ensure every safety measure is in place beforehand.

“This is a challenging time for many charities, but with the help of the public we are determined to be here for disabled people in the long-term.”