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Manchester Asda Store Praised For 'Quiet Hour' To Help Autistic Customers

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Manchester Asda Store Praised For 'Quiet Hour' To Help Autistic Customers

Asda Living in Cheetham Hill, Manchester has been praised for its plan to host a ‘quiet hour’ to make shopping easier for autistic and disabled customers.

According to ManchesterEveningNews.co.uk, from 7 May, the store will be nearly silent for one hour every Saturday morning, with the escalators, instore music and display TVs turned off, making the shop a better space for people who may be troubled by loud noises.

As well as keeping the noise levels low, the store will give autistic and disabled customers a map of the store featuring pictures instead of words.

Manager Simon Lea told ManchesterEveningNews.co.uk that he had the idea for the 'quiet hour' after seeing a child with autism struggle to cope on the shopfloor.

The incident prompted him to speak to a member of staff who also had an autistic child, as well as disabled customers, to see if he could improve the shopping experience for them.

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"It’s all about helping people really. Six months ago I would have said 'control your child' even though I’ve got children. But speaking to people with autism and disabled people has helped me think about how I can make it a better place to shop," he explained.

© 2016 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Jenny Whelan. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazineclick here.

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