Autism-friendly shopping hour

A new autism-friendly quiet hour is set to change the way families in Renfrewshire do their shopping.

Supermarket Morrisons is offering a quiet hour in some stores to improve the experience for older shoppers and customers with autism.

Each week, the supermarket is dimming lights, turning off music and stopping tannoy announcements in stores across Paisley and Erskine.

Every Saturday, between 9am and 10am, the Morrisons in Anchor Mills and Falside Road, in Paisley, and Bridgewater Place, Erskine, will take part in the new scheme.

The times were chosen after Morrisons carried out a trial earlier in the year at three of its stores to find a convenient time each week for the quieter hour to take place.

The initiative was created with the support of the National Autistic Society as many people who are autistic, or those with autistic children, can find shopping in a supermarket an anxious experience.

Daniel Cadey, from the National Autistic Society, said: “Morrisons quieter hour is a step in the right direction for autistic people who find supermarket shopping a real struggle.”

Adam Naylor, at Morrisons Paisley, said:“Our initial trials showed there is a need for a quieter shopping experience.

“We hope that these changes make a real difference for some of our customers at our store.”

For further information on Morrisons Quieter Hour please visit https://my.morrisons.com/blog/ community/quieter-hour/