Decision to be made on re-opening Edinburgh's B&Q stores following trial

A decision is to be made on re-opening the Capital’s B&Q stores following a trial at one of the DIY store’s in Scotland.

Video footage emerged over the weekend of long queues forming outside the company’s Paisley outlet, one of 14 stores to open across the UK as part of a trial.

The store was the first and only B&Q branch in Scotland to open since they all closed in March due to lockdown measures.

B&Q announced it will review the Paisley branch trial in the next few days before deciding whether or not it is safe to re-open other stores across the country, including the outlets in Edinburgh. | JPIMedia

The company has assured strict social distancing regulations are in place to keep shoppers safe.

It has announced it will review the trial in the next few days before deciding whether or not it is safe to re-open other stores across the country, including the outlets in Edinburgh.

A B&Q spokeswoman said: "As an essential retailer, we’ve watched other essential retailers support social distancing in their stores and are in a position to follow best practice and re-open a small number of our stores as a trial, while keeping our colleagues and customers safe.

"At these 14 trial stores, we’ve introduced social distancing controls, similar to shopping at a supermarket. We’re strictly limiting the number of customers in store at any one time, and so customers may need to queue before entering the store. To help remind everyone to respect each other’s personal space, we have two metre floor markers throughout these stores and also perspex screens at the checkouts.

"Before making any decisions about re-opening more stores, including those in Edinburgh, we’ll be reviewing our trial.

"We continue to urge all customers to follow the Government’s social distancing guidelines and to shop responsibly only for what is necessary."