The CHARITY has reopened its doors after losing £40,000 in revenue due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Swindon Children’s Scrapstore was forced to shut its store on Bramble Close in March as the country went into lockdown.
It has now reopened to the public and put in place social-distancing measures with a one-way system for customers to be able to move around safely.
CEO Olivia McCann said: “We are allowing 10 people in store at any one time to ensure people feel safe and comfortable.
“Face masks need to be worn while customers are inside the building and these can be purchased form the Scrapstore if needed. Gloves will be provided for all customers to wear this due to the large number of products available.”
She added “Since the Scrapstore closed the store in March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic we adapted our service and developed a series of new projects which have and continue to provide resources and support to the local community.
“But we have lost £40,000 income during the coronavirus pandemic and hope the community will start to visit the Scrapstore.” The 'creative resources' area in the store, which has all the non-priced items used for educational and recreational play, will be closed for a few more weeks while the store is ready to fully open.
Children are not allowed in store at the moment until they can increase the numbers of people that can be accommodated in the store.
Olivia decided to set up an online shop during lockdown to offer educational packs and resources for children stuck at home and help the charity cope with financial loss.
“The Scrapstore is only a small charity with five members of staff but it is a vital part of the community carrying out a series of initiatives and delivering essential services to people who are most in need and makes a positive impact on the local community through the projects and services they provide,” Olivia said.
The Scrapstore recently received a grant from the Wiltshire & Swindon Community Foundation to produce 900 children’s creative play resource boxes to be distributed to primary aged children and families. Olivia added: “So far we’ve distributed 695 boxes to 13 local schools free of charge, the children love them and are having hours of fun simulating their imagination and learning through play.”