Some garden centres reopen around Sleaford after lockdown while one will delay until next week

The move was part of a gradual easing of coronavirus lockdown restrictions by the government which said that people who cannot work from home should be encouraged to go back to work.

This allowed garden centres and estate agents to be among the first business sectors to be allowed to re-open aside from food and essentials retailers that have been allowed generally to operate throughout in most cases.

Pennell’s re-opened their Four Seasons garden centre in Sleaford this morning at 8.45am and manager Anton Pearson said they already had a queue of 10 or 11 people waiting to get in and there has been a steady stream of customers throughout the day.

Opening times will have been shortened to allow for restocking and cleaning and so the store will open at 8.30am and close at 4.30pm (last entry at 3.30pm).

Pennells’ other shops at Lincoln and Cleethorpe will not reopen until Friday.

The garden centre had been open for deliveries for the last three weeks and the farm shop and Simpsons butchers had been open throughout that time too, so he said they had learned a lot during that time about changing customer habits.

Mr Pearson said: “As per the government guidance we have supplied gloves, face masks and visors which we encourage staff to use. Staff will also stay on to clean customer service areas and replenish stock so that customers get all our attention when we are open.”

Tills and counters have screens erected to separate staff from customers.

He admitted some staff had been wary about opening to the public, but by ensuring they can be relatively contact-free and the knowledge that the business was now taking money was reassuring.

Looking back at the last few weeks, he admits that they were overwhelmed with delivery orders, but interestingly these had taken them to areas where they did not realise they had customers.

He said: “We are coping fairly well. we think we have taken all the precautions, but it is a learning curve and I personally think this is the right time to open. We have a lot of outdoor space and it is not a congested shop.”

According to guidance the shop could accept up to 27 customers at a time but they were trialling with 20.

Mr Pearson said it has been a tough couple of months for the garden centre trade at what is their busiest time: “Every garden centre has had a massive loss because of the seasonal bedding side, but the bigger shrubs and flowering perennials we can keep. We have lost some stock but kept the majority healthy.

“The biggest thing is the loss of earnings. It is hard to tell how much damage it has done financially. We are hoping people who have been furloughed have not been spending their pay and it might lead to a surge in trade towards Christmas.”

Ruskington and Belton Garden Centres both opened today as well, opening Monday to Saturday 9am to 5pm and Sunday 10am to 4pm.

However, bosses of Parker’s Garden Centre in Anwick have elected not to re-open until next week.

In a statement on their Facebook page they said they were delaying to make sure everything was as safe as possible: “We have taken the decision not to open until next Tuesday, May 19. This gives us vital time to ensure the shop is as safe as it can be upon reopening. We are already hard at work putting measures in place.”

They said: “These are difficult times and there will be many changes to the way you shop with us, but we are confident that with your help we can provide a safe shopping experience.”

The garden centre will be revising opening hours to 10am – 4pm Tuesday to Sunday and will be closed on Mondays.

There will be a limit to the number of customers who can enter the shop at once and they will be asking that only one person per household comes into the shop.

There will also be a temporary ban on dogs in the shop for safety, and a reduced customer service.

They say: “In these anxious times, we cannot offer the services we had in the past such as showing customers around the shop, as this would make social distancing very difficult. We are working on alternative ways that we can provide advice from a safe distance.”

There will also be cash payments to avoid contact between till operators and customers and the coffee shop remains closed.