More good news for DIYers as Wickes opens its doors again in Northampton

Wickes' Sixfields store is open again for DIYers | other

Safety-first promise as three county stores are among first batch to return

Wickes has become the latest DIY giant to reopen its Northampton store.

The Sixfields site is one of around 100 nationwide to be unlocked as part of a phased reopening following seven weeks shuttered by the Covid-19 crisis.

It follows rivals B&Q and Homebase who reopened their stores in the town last month.

And Wickes — which is owned by Northampton — based builders merchant -- promised to follow strict safety policies to keep staff and customers safe and hours will initially be limited to 7am-4pm each day.

A spokesman said: "At Wickes we put customer safety at the heart of everything we do.

But right now, that doesn't just mean goggles, steel toe-capped boots or yellow helmets. It means two-metre distances, paying by card and safety screens at checkouts.

"We ask all of you to do it right by following our new safety measures."

Wickes — like B&Q and Homebase — is classed as an essential retailer but decided to shut all its UK branches during the Covid-19 lockdown was announced on March 23 to protect staff.

Stores at Kettering and Corby are also now open again while the site at Rushden is among the second wave of stores pencilled in to open on Monday (May 18).

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

In order for us to continue to provide high quality and trusted local news on this free-to-read site, I am asking you to also please purchase a copy of our newspaper when you do your weekly shop.

Our journalists are highly trained and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards in the world. But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you helping us to provide you with news and information by buying a copy of our newspaper.

Thank you.