Many thanks to all of you who have used the shop for your deliveries. Whether you are using the shop because you are unable to leave your home or are simply avoiding a trip from your home by using the shop, you are doing the right thing. 

The shop has experienced a multitude of changes in the last few weeks, from being a quaint local village shop with the emphasis on the cafe/deli it is now an online, delivery only supplier. This is a huge change but the adaptation has been fairly painless. The emphasis has shifted but the continued goodwill of volunteers, suppliers and customers has enabled a remarkable shift in the way the shop serves the community. The shop is now delivering around 40 to 50 orders a day. In terms of groceries the shop now delivers in a day about the same as the shop, in normal times, sold in 2 weeks.

We have had many offers of volunteer time, please accept that we cannot accept all of these. Our emphasis at the moment is on building two groups of volunteers who can self manage the shop in isolation from the other group. This builds some resilience and, hopefully, ensures we can keep the shop functioning in the event that a member of one of the groups develops Covid-19 symptoms.

Those of us who help at the shop at the moment are in many ways the lucky ones, we have a purpose, a focus and a sense of community. This is exactly what the shop is there for and has been there for for many years. We can only do what we’re doing now because of the hard yards put in by those who created and sustained the shop over many years. One day, hopefully not too far away, we’ll be able to mingle inside and outside the shop enjoying each other’s company. That will only be possible because of the support the shop has received during good times and bad.