As villagers will already know, following the closure of our shop at 116 Top Lane in December, we have been pursuing several options for reopening in new premises within Whitley or Shaw. We are delighted to be able to share with you now a proposal for moving forward with a new Whitley Stores to build on the success of our year and a half of operation.

The proposed location for the new shop is along the front edge of the Pear Tree car park, in the space behind the flower bed on the right-hand side as you enter. It has been calculated that this position will have the least impact on the Pear Tree parking, taking up just two existing parking spaces. It also gives Whitley Stores a really visible position from the road, which will help to attract passing trade.

This keeps the shop in the established ‘eye of the village’, with easy access for pedestrians and plentiful parking for delivery vans and any customers who come by car.

We are extremely grateful to Jackie and Adrian for coming to us with the offer of space to operate alongside them. They have experience in a previous pub of working together with an adjoining farm shop and in fact many community shops around the country operate successfully from local pub or village hall car parks.

We plan to operate out of a portacabin, but clad in timber for greater visual appeal and aim to be open 7 days a week, provisionally 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday and 10am to 4pm on Sundays, but with hours to be fixed according to demand and volunteer availability.

It’s important to note that these plans are all subject to planning permission, but we are now in a position to prepare a planning application submission.

Please get in touch if you’re interested in finding out more, in becoming a member of Shaw and Whitley Community Hub, in joining our team of volunteers when we reopen hopefully in the summer, or particularly if you have experience of the planning process and may be able to help us.