FOLLOWING your excellent advice, this household has masked up and headed for York’s truly local shops - from small jewels like Little Apple Bookshop to York’s own department stores, Barnitts and Browns.

Browns is a fine shop, but I have a special affection for Barnitts for a particular reason. Years back we bought some saucepans there, and eventually I broke the lid of one.

If we’d bought from a national chain I’d have expected: (1) They don’t make those now (2) We don’t stock those now (3) You can’t buy just the lid.

But Barnitts did better than that. I found they had the same saucepans still for sale – and the lids for sale separately. I thought “What a wonderful shop Barnitts is”.

I took the new lid home and told my wife. She said “What a wonderful shop Barnitts is”. I couldn’t have put it better myself.

John Heawood,

Eastward Avenue,

Fulford, York