NON-essential shops have been forced to temporarily close again from today, November 4, as England goes into lockdown.
Instead, most of us will need to resort to internet shopping to buy things like clothes, electronics, books and Christmas presents during the four-week shutdown.
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Like the first lockdown, only a small handful of critical stores are allowed to stay open, such as supermarkets, pharmacies and garden centres.
The lockdown is expected to last until December 2, although there is already speculation that the measures will go on even longer than planned.
On November 3, Rishi Sunak said “all bets are off” when asked if the national shutdown will end after a month, while TV’s Dr Hilary Jones warned that it’s “inevitable” that it will be extended.
The government has now released details of what stores are considered non-essential and must temporarily close again. These include:
- clothes shops
- electronics stores
- car showrooms
- travel agents
- betting shops and adult gaming centres
- auction houses
- tailors
- car washes
- tobacco and vape shops
- card shops
- phone shops
- jewellery stores
- toy shops
- homeware shops
- bookstores
- music shops
Fortunately, plenty of shops are offeing online services as an alternative so you should still be able to get what you need.
Which businesses WILL be staying open through lockdown
THE following businesses are allowed to stay open during the second coronavirus lockdown in England:
- Supermarkets
- Food retailers
- Convenience stores and corner shops
- Off licenses and licensed shops selling alcohol including breweries
- Pharmacies and chemists
- Newsagents
- Hardware stores
- Building merchants and building services
- Petrol stations
- Car repair and MOT services
- Bicycle shops
- Taxi or vehicle hire businesses
- Banks
- Building societies
- Credit unions
- Short term loan providers
- Savings clubs
- Cash points
- Currency exchanges
- Post offices
- Funeral directors
- Launderettes and dry cleaners
- Dental services
- Opticians
- Hearing services
- Chiropody
- Chiropractors
- Osteopaths
- Mental health services
- Veterinary surgeons and pet shops
- Agricultural supplies shop
- Storage and distribution facilities
- Car parks
- Public toilets
- Garden centres
Here’s a list of the big brands that have closed their physical premises:
Argos
- Stores in Wales are closed until November 9.
- Argos stores within Sainsbury’s supermarkets in Wales are also closed, but pre-paid online orders can be collected as part of your essential food shop
- Argos stores and Argos branches within Sainsbury’s supermarkets remain open across England, Scotland and Northern Ireland, where you can pay in-store
- Online delivery is still available.
Carphone Warehouse
- Currently running limited hours – you can check which shops are open using the store locator
- Shops in England are closed from Thursday.
Clarks
- All UK and Ireland stores are currently closed
- Customers can still shop online
- If you have an order you were expecting to pick up in store it will be cancelled or replaced.
Clintons
- Only a handful of stores reopened after lockdown but have closed again from today.
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Currys
- Stores in England are closed from today
- In Wales, stores are shut now given local rules, so you can only order online and deliver to home
- In Scotland & Northern Ireland, stores are open as normal now and will continue to stay open post-Nov 5 (until rules change)
- In-store experts are available online by video call.
Debenhams
- Stores in England are shut from November 5. Debenhams says it will re-open when told it is safe to do so
- Stores in Wales are currently shut but scheduled to open on Monday November 9
- All stores in Scotland and Northern Ireland are open
- The store finder is up to date with which stores are open and the services that are available.
Dorothy Perkins
- Stores in England have shut from Thursday
- You can check all store opening hours using the store locator pages
- Free home delivery on orders over £30 and extended returns.
Early Learning Centre and the Entertainer
- Welsh stores are closed
- England stores are closed from Thursday.
Ernest Jones
- Ernest Jones stores in Eire and Wales have been temporarily closed.
- Home delivery is still available.
Evans
Game
- Stores in England are shut from Thursday
- You can still shop online and home delivery services are still running.
HMV
- Stores are shut from Thursday, but customers can shop online
Jessops
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John Lewis
- Stores in England closed from November 5
- John Lewis has extended its returns policy over the Christmas period – anything bought between now and December 24 can be returned until January 28 2021.
Lakeland
- Stores in Wales are shut
- Stores in England are closed
- Stores in Scotland are currently open
- Some products are restricted due to high demand.
Matalan
- All stores in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland stayed open until Thursday. You can click here to view opening hours.
- Full ranges, including sale items, are available online and via the app.
M&S
- In Wales, clothing-only stores are shut, and clothing-only floors are open for access only
- From Thursday clothing shops across England are also closed
- The full range is available online or via the app.
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New Look
- All stores in England are closed – you can still shop the full range online
- Parcels not collected by Wednesday November 4 will be held in store until lockdown is lifted
- New Look has also extended its returns policy.
Next
- Stores in Wales will reopen on Monday November 9
- Furniture can still be delivered to a room of your choice
- Daily order limits to allow social distancing in warehouses.
Peacocks
- Stores in Wales closed from October 23
- Shops in England closed from November 5
- You can get the winter ranges online.
Primark
- Primark stores in Ireland, France, Belgium, Wales, Catalonia in Spain and Slovenia have already temporarily shut down
- Shops in England closed on Thursday until December 2.
- Primark is not available to shop online.
Smyths
- Stores in England closed on November 4 until December 2. Home Delivery and Click & Collect will be available as normal throughout lockdown.
- Stores in Wales are closed until Monday November 9 2020. Click & Collect is currently not available while stores are closed. Home delivery is available as normal.
- Stores in Scotland and Northern Ireland are open and operating as normal.
Topshop
- Stores in Wales have temporarily closed
- Shops in England closed on Thursday
- Topshop has upgraded its delivery offering so customers can get free Standard Delivery on orders over £30 to home.
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Waterstones
- All shops in Wales are temporarily shut until November 19 2020
- All shops in Ireland (including Hodges Figgis) are temporarily shut until December 1 2020
- Shops in England closed from today.
WH Smith
- Across Wales, WH Smith has closed High Street stores that do not host a Post Office . Non-essential products and services are also temporarily unavailable in these stores.
- Customers are able to continue to access key postal and banking services in these locations.
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This post first appeared on thesun.co.uk
