SHOPPERS have been left in despair after one of the UK’s biggest supermarket chains announced they are closing down a beloved store.

Locals have described the shock decision to shut the doors of the popular branch as “a huge loss” for the town centre.

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The local Co-op store in the Meadows, Nottingham is set to finally close its doors in November after being a mainstay in the Bridgeway Shopping Centre for over 50 years.

Co-op haven’t given a reason for the closure but said it was a “difficult decision”.

The final day of trading will be Saturday, November 16.

A spokesperson for Co-op confirmed the closure saying: “Co-op regularly reviews its stores. In addition to opening new stores we sometimes, and only after careful consideration, have to take the difficult decision to close a store.

“With the expiry of the lease our store in the Bridgeway Centre will close.

“Colleagues, who have been informed, are being fully supported with every effort being taken to offer alternative positions in the area.

“We would like to thank the community for its support of this store.”

Local David Cooksy was left “disappointed” when he heard the store was closing down.

David, 85, and his wife Heidi, 82, have been regular Co-op customers since the 50s in the Meadows.

He told the BBC: “It’s convenient. It’s a convenience store, that’s what it’s called and now it’s not going to be here.

“It’s always been here. I go back to the 50s in the Meadows and there’s always been a Co-op.”

You see so many people come here in the morning – it’s a loss to the community

Aparna ValsalaMeadows resident

Laney Neilson, 24, said the branch was a favourite for older locals including her grandparents due to its prime location in the town centre.

She said the closure has made many pensioners “quite upset” with the nearest store no longer being in walking distance.

The next closest Co-op stores for shoppers in the area are on Station Street and Trent Bridge in Nottingham or Trent Boulevard in West Bridgford.

Meadows resident Aparna Valsala, 33, added: “You see so many people come here in the morning – it’s a loss to the community.”

It comes as another supermarket store rolled down its shutters for good at the end of September.

East of England Co-op in Cauldwell Hall Road, Ipswich ended trading on August 31 – leaving shoppers upset by the closure.

A Waitrose store in Hall Green, Birmingham, has also announced it will close its doors for the final time on January 14 after welcoming customers for more than 50 years.

HIGH STREET CLOSURES

Several high-street retailers have been struggling to get by over the past few years.

The pandemic was a tough blow as many stores had to close during lockdown.

Since then energy costs have risen and more shoppers than ever are choosing to order online rather than head into stores.

This has left some remaining retailers grappling with budgets and having no choice but to close stores to cut costs.

For the most part, supermarkets have braved the storm as they provide essential items like food and drink.

But other retailers have been less fortunate The Body Shop is currently going through administration and announced plans to close half of its 198 stores.

Boots announced it would be closing 300 stores over the next year as part of plans to evolve its brand.

M&S has also confirmed store closure and openings with plans to ensure it has the best store locations.

PROTECT your home against autumn downpours and winter draughts.

Fixing a broken tile or blocked gutter now is much cheaper than paying for a costly fix further down the line.

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And, as energy bills rose again this week, taking steps to keep the heat in your home could save you a fortune.

These ten essential winter checks could save you hundreds of pounds.

Check gutters for blockages

LEAVES and moss can block your gutters leading to damp problems.

According to Checkatrade, a professional gutter clean for a semi-detached house costs from £100 to £150, while a problem with penetrating damp could cost £1,000 to sort out, fix the plaster and re-decorate.

To clear gutters yourself, set up a ladder, attaching your bucket to an S hook, from £3 at B&Q, to leave your hands free.

Using gloves, scoop debris from the gutter into your bucket before rinsing through with a hosepipe.

Turn on your heating

Joanna O’Loan, knowledge manager at the Energy Saving Trust, suggests doing an MOT on your heating now.

She says: “Give it a trial run, so you can sort out any glitches before the first real cold snap — that’s when plumbers will be rushed off their feet.”

If your radiators have cold spots, you can bleed them yourself. Find a step-by-step guide at uswitch.com.

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Learn your heating controls

“ONE of the biggest mistakes people make is not understanding their heating controls,” says Joanna.

She explains that the boiler programmer, thermostat and radiator valves need to work together.

Set your heating on the programmer to come on only when you need it.

Set the thermostat temperature to between 18 and 21 degrees and adjust your radiators according to which rooms you use the most.

You can buy radiator valves for under £10 and fit them to radiators.

Joanna says: “Turn the radiators right down in rooms you don’t use but don’t turn them off completely as this could make any damp issue worse.

“If you have a wireless thermostat, put it in a room you use a lot, like a living room.”

Become a draught detective

DON’T let warm air disappear through cracks around doors and windows.

You could save around £40 a year on your heating bill by draught-proofing windows and doors, according to the Energy Saving Trust.

Professional draught-proofing could cost around £250 for the whole home.

That could be money well spent, but there are measures you can take yourself.

The cheapest solution is self-adhesive foam strips, but metal or plastic strips with brushes attached are likely to last longer.

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Insulate your loft

A QUARTER of heat is lost through the roof in an uninsulated home.

It can cost around £950 to add the right insulation to a semi, but that could save you around £200 a year on your energy bill.

Joanna says: “A lot of people have already insulated their loft but not to the required level.”

If you live in a home built between 1930 and 1980, look in to cavity wall insulation, costing £1,000 to £4,000.

Help for improvements may be available through the ECO scheme for low-income households, and the Great British Insulation Scheme for homes with an EPC rating D to G, and within Council Tax bands A-D in England and A-E in Scotland and Wales.

Sweep the chimney

YOU should have a chimney swept at least every year.

A professional clean is essential to reduce the risk of harmful fumes, soot and prevent chimney fires.

It will cost around £65, but will cut the danger of a house fire.

According to Checkatrade, the average cost of restoring a house after a fire is nearly £36,000.

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Check your roof tiles

AS well as letting rain in, loose roof tiles can fly off in stormy ­weather and cause serious damage.

Fix before the winter winds arrive.

The average roof tile replacement cost is £170 for up to five broken tiles.

Service your boiler

GETTING your boiler checked annually by a Gas Safe plumber (gassaferegister.co.uk) can help you avoid expensive boiler repairs.

The plumber can help your boiler run more efficiently, so you can save on energy bills.

They may bleed your radiators for no extra cost, as well as advising on balancing heating controls.

A boiler service comes in at around £100.

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Fix broken fences

STORMS may arrive with cheery names but the damage they leave is far from friendly.

Wobbly fences are often the first casualty of a strong autumn gust.

For repair tips and videos, go to the B&Q website at DIY.com.

Check for help

THOSE who are more vulnerable should add their details to the Priority Services Register at thepsr.co.uk.

Free to join, it helps utility companies, including energy suppliers and water companies, look after customers with extra needs.

Also check that you are getting all the help you are entitled to with bills.

Contact turn2us.org.uk or citizensadvice.org.uk.

TESCO has been accused of failing right-handed shoppers after new trolleys appear to be designed for lefties.

Customers say putting the slot for a portable barcode scanner on the left makes trolleys impractical and awkward to use for righties.

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One shopper fumed: “Please put the handheld thing back on the right.

“Or at least make a mixture of trolleys available.

“Years of it being on the right and 90 per cent are right-handed and this change is just awfully impractical.”

Another added: “It drives me nuts.”

A third moaned: “It’s so awkward when right-handed.”

One groaned: “Appreciate the new trolleys, but why the F are the holders for the scanners on the wrong side?”

But left-handed gift shop owner Stel Coombe, 60, from Saltburn, North Yorks, said: “I’m glad to see we lefties finally have a tiny corner of the world for ourselves thanks to the humble Tesco shopping trolley.

“However, because we have superior hand eye co-ordination and we’ve evolved to adapt, I’m sure we wouldn’t mind the scanners being to the right.”

North Londoner Jess Shaw, 48, owner of team-building firm Pact Creative Training, added: “I’ve always struggled to use scissors, peelers and other utensils designed for right-handers.

“When I was a kid, I even used to go to a shop that sold things for left-handed people.

“I don’t know why they’ve put the scanners on the left of trolleys but it’s nice that something works well for us for a change — even if it was a mistake.”

Prof Chris McManus, author of Right Hand, Left Hand, said: “Historically, many items have been biased so that they are easier for right-handers to use.

“Designers have though been very successful in recent years at making objects ambidextrous so anyone can use them, and that is surely the ideal.”

Tesco was contacted for comment.

It is understood the store is considering the feedback.

A SAVVY customer has shared how they managed to shave hundreds off their home insurance bill by using a nifty Martin Lewis hack.

The saver named Fiona told readers of Martin’s MoneySavingExpert about how she pocketed the hefty £423.

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“I received a renewal notice which shot up by a few hundred quid to £866 (for a standard four-bed),” she said.

“Your newsletter landed, I used your tips and which comparison websites to use, and 40 minutes later I found the exact same cover for £443!

“A huge saving of £423, woohoo!

“Thank you so much!”

Fiona was following the money-saving whizz’s advice to “combine comparison sites for 100s of quotes in minutes – don’t assume they’re all the same.”

It continues: “Never just auto-renew – there’s no guarantee your existing insurer will give you the cheapest or best cover.

“It’s always worth a check elsewhere. Comparison sites zip your info to dozens of insurers and brokers at once.

“Yet don’t just use one as a) they can cover different insurers, and b) they often have different prices for the same firm.”

It comes as home insurance premiums soared this earlier this year in a blow for households.

Premiums increased by 19% between the first three months of 2023 and the same time period this year, according to the Association of British Insurers (ABI).

The body, which represents industry, said the average combined buildings and contents premium was £375 at the start of the year.

What is home insurance?

Home insurance is designed to cover you in the event of fire, flood, or theft or loss of any item inside it.

It’s not a legal requirement, unlike car insurance, but it can be useful if something goes awry.

There are two types of home insurance policy – contents and buildings.

Buildings insurance covers the cost of repairing any damage to the structure of your property which might have been caused by a fire or flooding.

The “building” includes elements like your roof, walls and floors as well as permanent fixtures such as windows or fitted kitchens.

Contents insurance says what it does on the tin – it covers you in case the contents of your home are damaged, lost or stolen.

How else to save money on home insurance

There’s a few other ways you can save money on your home insurance…

Ceri McMillan, insurance expert at Go Compare previously told The Sun renewing your policy 27 days ahead of it expiring could save you £60.

And at the very least, don’t wait for your policy to auto-renew as you’ll likely pay more than if you shop around for a cheaper deal.

If you’ve got the money up front, it’s worth paying for your premium in one lump sum as well.

Ceri previously told The Sun you can save around 10% on your premium using the trick.

The ABI said the average home insurance premium was £341 in 2023, which means you could save around £34.

Combining contents and buildings policies rather than paying for them separately could save you £100 a year as well, according to Confused.com.

Installing a burglar alarm can help drive down your premium price as well, albeit after the initial up front cost.

Consumer group Which? says you can get an alarm for around £100, and install it yourself to save extra cash.

You can buy either buildings or contents policies separately, or combined so you are covered across all scenarios.

Not all home insurance policies cover the same things though, so it’s worth shopping around.

You can use price comparison websites like Compare the Market, GoCompare and Uswitch.

JUST in case it’s not ingrained in your memory – Porridge Week starts tomorrow.

Oats are a versatile, good-value food, and there are many different ways to enjoy them.

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Give these delicious recipes a try . . . 

WEIGH IT UP: Gram for gram, porridge oats make one of the best value breakfasts at under 5p a serving — half the price of supermarket own-brand cornflakes.

A morning bowl can be jazzed up with syrup, brown sugar, thawed-out frozen ­berries, banana, seeds or nuts.

SMOOTHIE OPERATOR: Use frozen berries and oats to make a tasty, healthy smoothie. Blend with milk and yoghurt for a filling drink that will release energy throughout the morning.

OH CRUMBS: Make a spicy, crispy crumb to coat around 400g of chicken or fish fillets for four people.

Use a mixer to whizz up 150g oats with two tablespoons of oil and a teaspoon each of herbs and spices — try oregano, paprika and garlic granules.

Dip the fillets in a dish of flour to cover, then in whisked egg, and follow with the oat crumb, before frying.

FLIP DON’T FLAP: For a simple flapjack swap, make some easy oat biscuits.

Use 100g each of oats, flour, sugar and butter. Mix the oats and flour with a teaspoon of mixed spice. Melt the sugar and butter with a tablespoon of honey.

Mix together and cool slightly before shaping into balls. Place on a baking sheet, press down slightly, then bake at 180C for 15 to 20 minutes.

BURGER BOOST: Beef up your burgers by adding some oats. You can mix around 400g of minced beef or turkey with 80g oats. Stir in a finely chopped and fried onion, then add a dash of salt, pepper and garlic granules.

Bind the mixture together with a beaten egg — add a bit at a time until you get the right consistency, where the mixture holds together without being too wet. Form into patties and gently fry.

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BRIGHTEN your walls with a classic poster, now half price at the London Transport Museum shop. The 18in x 13in Off To The Zoo is down from £15 to £7.50.

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THE Aeroccino milk frother, from nespresso.com will help you make a tasty at home latte for £79. Or you can have foam and fortune with Aldi’s Ambiano frother, £19.99, which hits stores today.

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A MAJOR cinema chain will shut its doors for good tomorrow, devastating locals.

Cineworld‘s site in Glasgow Parkhead is set to permanently shutter on October 6.

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In a Facebook post Cineworld said: “After years of providing movie lovers with a place to feel more, we have made the difficult decision to close Cineworld Glasgow Parkhead.

“Thank you to all of you movie-loving customers for choosing us over the years. We hope you continue to enjoy watching movies at our local cinemas”

Locals were quick to chime in and share their heartbreak at the popular cinema’s closure.

“I am so saddened by this news, I love this cinema, I go at least once a week and find all the staff very nice and helpful,” said one.

Another said: “Gutted I’ve been going to this cinema since I was young.”

While a third described the news as “brutal”.

Cineworld confirmed this week it would close five locations across the UK.

Bosses at the troubled entertainment group have been pushing for the closures since July, but the move needed to be approved by the courts first.

The reduction in its portfolio forms part of a major restructuring plan to keep the company’s head above water.

Just this week, a judge gave the go-ahead for £16million to be injected into Cineworld’s four companies which form the business.

The cash came from the business’s parent company, with an extra £35million to also be made available.

Its four companies. Cine-UK Ltd, Cineworld Cinemas Ltd, Cineworld Cinema Properties Ltd and Cineworld Estates Ltd, will also negotiate leases for each of their 101 sites across the UK.

The five sites will shut for good on these exact dates:

• Glasgow Parkhead (closing October 6)
• Bedford (closing October 6)
• Swindon Regent Circus (closing October 6)
• Loughborough (closing October 13)
• Yate (closing October 13)

It comes as the chain is also said to be renegotiating rent agreements for around 50 of its sites.

Struggling businesses often do this to help lower their operating costs and help retain more of their brick-and-mortar estate.

However, landlords don’t need to accept what’s put forward in these discussions

This means that up to 50 additional Cineworld complexes could also be at risk of closure if the chain and its landlords cannot reach an agreement.

What else has happened at Cineworld?

This development follows a long period of trouble at Cineworld.

Just last year the business emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the US.

Filing for a Chapter 11 bankruptcy means a company intends to reorganise its debts and assets while remaining in business.

The company’s shares plunged almost 99% in the five years to 2023, as it was hit particularly hard by the pandemic and the enforced closure of its cinema sites.

Shortly after, Cineworld’s UK arm collapsed into administration on July 31.

The cinema chain was delisted from the London Stock Exchange a day later.

When a company enters administration in the UK, all control is passed to an appointed administrator, who must be a licensed insolvency practitioner.

A lot of major cinema chains have struggled following the pandemic, as customers got used to streaming films from home. 

Big blockbusters such as the Barbie Movie and Oppenheimer drove punters back to the movie theatre last year, but it has not been enough to keep some venues afloat.