A Harrogate District Hospice Charity that provides care and support for people living with terminal illness and bereavement is preparing to open the doors of six of their local shops this Saturday.
There will also be a temporary, centralised approach to donations for their shops. This follows an intensive period of planning and safety measures to incorporate changes brought about by the Coronavirus pandemic and ensure a Covid-19 secure shopping environment.
The first Saint Michael’s community shops to reopen on Saturday 4 July at 9:30am are as follows;
- House and Home, 196 Ripon Road, Harrogate
- 107 Cold Bath Road, Harrogate
- 42 Church Avenue, Harrogate
- 149 Kings Road, Harrogate
- 36 Market Place, Knaresborough
- 6 North Street, Ripon
All of the above will adhere to 1m-plus social distancing guidance, staff PPE and hygiene requirements, and each store will have a minimum number of customers that can enter dependent on footage and layout.
In order to ensure that all donations are quarantined for 72 hours before sale, and to navigate space constraints; the ‘Saint Michael’s Hospice Donation Drop Off Point’ (excluding furniture) will open specially this Saturday 4th July between the hours of 10am and 4pm, and then Monday to Friday 10am – 4pm thereafter. The temporary facility is signposted down the left-hand side of Hookstone Wood Road, Harrogate, HG2 8PN.
Supporters are being asked to donate their preloved items there instead of taking items to shops for the time being. Gift Aid will not be possible during this interim period and Saint Michael’s are reminding people that they will be unable to return boxes and bags used to deliver the donations in order to adhere to hygiene measures. Enquiries regarding furniture donations would be welcomed to the House and Home Shop on (01423) 563230.
Chief Executive Tony Collins said:
We are delighted that we are able to begin opening the doors of our wonderful shops following a through period of planning and preparation and we are keen to welcome our customers back. Naturally the safety of our customers, volunteers and employees has been at the very heart of our decision making.
We are thankful that so many local people have been keeping their donations safe at home for us. In order to manage the required quarantine of goods to the highest possible standards; we have centralised the receipt of donations for the safety of everyone.
For this reason we will be unable to take donations in at our shops and instead would ask for them to be taken to our temporary donation drop off point. We would very much like to thank the Yorkshire Agricultural Society for their support in making this alternative arrangement happen.
Saint Michael’s Community Shops play an essential role in supporting local people with terminal illness and bereavement, contributing £2million per year towards the provision of these vital local services.
