Poundland: Full list of stores reopening as coronavirus lockdown eases

All shops will enforce ‘robust’ health and safety measures to protect customers and staff

Poundland has announced that it is reopening a further 26 stores across the UK, as lockdown measures are slowly eased.

The discount retailer said that while it had kept most of its stores open for essential shopping, around 100 were temporarily shut in March.

Now, trade will resume in the additional stores again this week after it opened 51 shops earlier this month.

The closed shops were largely where there was another Poundland nearby or where shopping centres found it difficult to remain open, it added.

“As an essential retailer, we've continued to support customers in hundreds of towns - especially those who manage their budgets week-to-week and find it difficult to bulk buy,” said Barry Williams, managing director at Poundland.

”Even though we've kept serving customers, we know we're at our best as part of a vibrant thriving high street and that's why we're looking forward to our neighbours reopening in the coming weeks. Healthy town centres are the lifeblood of our economy and our communities.”

He continued: “It may have been tough for many retailers before this crisis and it's more important than ever that we make sure we encourage customers to say hi to their high streets as we return to business-as-unusual.”

Poundland said it was working closely with shopping centre landlords to reopen the last of its closed stores as soon as possible.

The reopened stores will have “robust” health and safety measures in place like all the stores that have remained open, it added.

These include door marshals, floor markers to help maintain social distancing, perspex screens at checkouts and no self-checkouts.

Poundland also said that staff will be expected to wash their hands every 20 minutes and key surfaces will be wiped down every hour.

The Poundland stores that will reopen this week are:

• Wick Retail Park
• Bedford
• Luton 133 The Mall
• Newport Spytty Retail Park
• Swansea Fforestfach Retail Park
• Bletchley Brunel Shopping Centre
• Christchurch
• Oswestry
• Hammersmith King Street
• Selly Oak Retail Park
• Crewe
• Pontefract
• Sutton Coldfield
• Chester Old Sealand Retail Park
• Yardley Swan Shopping Centre
• Rotherham Parkgate Retail Park
• York Monks Cross Retail Park
• Ilford The Mall
• King's Lynn Vancouver Shopping Centre
• Carlisle Scotch Street
• Nottingham Chilwell Retail Park
• Gateshead Team Valley Retail Park
• Droylsden
• Barrow in Furness Hindpool Retail Park
• Ormskirk Two Saints Retail Park
• Whitehaven

The news comes after prime minister Boris Johnson announced that outdoor markets and car showrooms across England will reopen from 1 June and all other non-essential retail – including high street shops, department stores and shopping centres – from 15 June.