The Wales Air Ambulance is delighted to announce that it will reopen the doors to its Whitchurch charity shop on Monday, November 23.   

  Due to government guidelines, the shop was forced to close during the coronavirus pandemic in March.   

 The  Whitchurch  shop has been closed since the original coronavirus lockdown began in March.  

  To reopen its doors, the Wales Air Ambulance has taken careful measures to ensure that the safety of the public is paramount.   

   To keep the public safe in the shop, the  Charity has altered the opening hours so that staff and volunteers  can  deep-clean  before and after they open each day.     

   The decision to reopen the Whitchurch shop, which is located in Merthyr Road, follows the successful reopening of its shops in Swansea, Wrexham, Cardiff, Bangor, Blackwood, Tywyn and most recently Tenby.

   The store will be open Monday to Friday between 11am and 4pm.     

   Following government guidelines, face coverings will be necessary in the  Whitchurch  charity shop, apart from those who have an exemption  from wearing them.    

   The Charity’s Head of Retail, Andrew Lawton, said: “We are delighted to be able to reopen our  Whitchurch  shop.  During the pandemic, Wales Air Ambulance has seen a significant decrease in funds following the closure of charity shops and cancelled events. Our  shops that  were  reopened  before the recent ‘fire break’ were  doing extremely well and we hope the  Whitchurch  store will be just as successful.    

   “The safety of our staff and customers is of paramount importance to us and we want to reassure our supporters that we’ve been working hard behind the scenes to ensure the store is safe. To  allow the shop to continue to stay open, we are asking customers to please stick to the strict guidelines. This is to ensure their safety, as well as the safety of our staff and volunteers. Thank you to all our customers who have been patient whilst waiting for the store to reopen.”    

   Customers are asked to  maintain  social distancing at all times and follow a one-way system. The Charity is also asking customers not to touch anything unless they plan on purchasing the item.     
    
When at the till, customers are asked to stand in the marked box while being served and to use contactless or card payment where possible. There are also hand sanitising  stations available for people to maintain their hand hygiene and Perspex screens have been fitted at each till point.   

   In addition, the Charity has made some changes regarding the donated items they receive, as well as their delivery service. These are as follows:     

   Donated Items – Unfortunately, the  Whitchurch  shop can only take a limited number of donated items at this time. This is  because of  the need to isolate donated goods for a while to avoid potential cross-contamination.     

   Deliveries – Unfortunately, the  Charity is only able to provide a limited delivery service at this time.    

   Any deliveries will be to the curbside only and not into homes. Personal collection from the shop is the preferred option, where possible.