ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has launched a new campaign to boost awareness of Challenge25 among consumers and support colleagues in local shops selling age restricted products.

Challenge25 is a long running successful policy created to support colleagues who are doing their job by enforcing the law on age restricted sales. The policy, which urges colleagues to check for proof of age for anyone that might look 25 or under, is most commonly used for alcohol purchases but also applies to all other age restricted products.

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has welcomed the publication of correspondence from the Treasury Committee which sheds further light on the increasing cost of card payments for businesses in the UK.

Book your place at the launch of ACS’ 2022 Welsh Local Shop Report, taking place virtually on 12^th January, 10 – 11am.

This virtual launch event will explore the findings of the 2022 report, taking a look at the stores, people and services shaping local shops in Wales.

The event will include a speech from Economy Minister Vaughan Gething about the Welsh Government’s plans to support local shops and the Minister for Rural Affairs Lesley Griffiths will talk about the positive impact of local shops on their communities throughout the pandemic.

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has launched its annual Colleague Survey and is calling on people working in local shops to provide their views on employment in the convenience sector.

Now in its seventh year, the ACS Colleague Survey is designed to:

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has launched a new group which aims to act as a support network for women running independent convenience stores.

The group was formed to provide women with a space to connect with each other and share their experiences and perspectives. ACS will facilitate quarterly meetings for the group, featuring guest speakers and workshops where the group will explore a range of topics, including: public speaking, confidence and how to use social media.

Yesterday (15^th December) the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts (PCSC) Bill had a Report Stage sitting, where an amendment addressing abuse towards public facing workers was considered.

ACS has outlined the scale and impact of violence and abuse against shopworkers, with over 40,000 shopworkers experiencing violence and 89% experiencing verbal abuse over the past year in briefings to peers throughout the passage of the Bill. Ahead of the debate ACS contacted and briefed Peers to urge them to support the amendment.

Today (15^th December) a number of major UK banks have announced plans to work together and share services to ensure that communities can continue to access their cash.

The collaboration has been achieved through the Access to Cash Action Group and signals a long-term commitment to ensuring that consumers can continue to have access to cash and banking services.

Communities will also be able to request a review of their community’s needs from the summer of 2022.

The Scottish Government has announced that the introduction of a deposit return scheme bottles and cans has been delayed and will go live across Scotland on 16 August 2023.

The announcement follows an independent review which highlighted the impact of Covid-19 on the scheme. The scheme was originally due to be introduced in this year and this was then pushed back to July 2022 but has now been delayed for a further year.  

Vikki Howells MS has been elected as the Chairperson of the Cross Party Group on Small Shops, re-established for the sixth term of the Senedd.

The core purpose of the group is to raise awareness in the Welsh Parliament about policy issues concerning the small shopkeepers who trade across communities in Wales. 

The group has previously hosted the Supporting Entrepreneurship Inquiry and held several set piece meetings with Ministers in attendance on a range of issues affecting convenience stores including: business rates, retail crime and planning reforms.

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) is calling on retailers to share their experiences of retail crime over the last 12 months for ACS’ Crime Report.

The survey aims to look at the impact that crime is having on the convenience sector and colleagues working in stores, including the number of incidents and how much crime has cost local shops over the past 12 months.