YORK charity St Leonard's Hospice will reopen two of its shops and its donation centre from next Tuesday.

The charity temporarily closed its donation centre and 14 shops as a result of the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

Nearly three months later and the charity has announced that from Tuesday, its donation centre and clothes shop in Acomb and Ousegate shop in Selby will reopen for three days a week. 

Helen Moreton, retail manager, explained: “Our outlets in Acomb will be open on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays between 9am and 3.30pm, with donations only accepted at the donation centre. Our shop in Ousegate is opening at the same times but on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays and will also be accepting donations."

She added: “The safety of our customers, volunteers and staff are of paramount importance to us and so we have put stringent safety measures in place. We have installed screens at the tills and ensured hand gel is available for everyone. We will also limit the numbers in the shop at any one time to allow for social distancing. We will also be quarantining donations for 72 hours before they are sorted and then displayed in our shops.”

Closing the shops means St Leonard's Hospice has lost significant income which is needed to provide vital care for patients and their families with a life-limiting illness.

Helen said: “We know lots of you have items ready to donate and for that we are truly grateful, as we need your donations and your custom more than ever. To help us save time and cut down on waste, we have a #SortItYourself checklist on social media and our website that asks for only good quality items to be donated which means more time and money can go towards supporting patients and those close to them.”

St Leonard’s is aiming to reopen the remainder of its shops in July but again this will initially be on a part-time basis.

To find out more about the #SortItYourself checklist, visit the website: stleonardshospice.org.uk or contact the retail team on 01904 788 777.