DEBENHAMS staff are ready to welcome customers back with open arms today...but from behind perspex screens.

Most non-essential stores re-opened on Monday as the lockdown was eased by the Government.

However, both Southend and Basildon stores are opening today to avoid the initial huge rush of customers seen around the country.

The slight delay helps the retail giant take extra care of staff ensuring they are able to cope, as well as putting customers’ safety first.

Dawn Jeakings, centre manager at the Royals Shopping Centre in Southend, felt a sense of relief as the huge queues calmed yesterday.

She said: “Things were a lot calmer compared with Monday.

“We are very excited about the re-opening of Debenhams.

“Most staff have been on furlough but everyone is excited to have some customer interaction and try and start to get back to normal. Same with our cleaning staff at the centre - they can’t do enough for us.

“Safety measures in the store will be exactly the same as the other stores with perspex screens, sanitisers and a one-way system.

“They have cleared a lot of areas and walkways are a lot bigger.

“They have been doing this for the last couple of weeks.”

Shopping centres around the country have been putting robust social distancing measures in place and taking extra precautions.

Mrs Jeakings added: “All of these retailers aren’t taking as much money but spending out lots of money to facilitate these safety measures which is definitely a challenge

“Initially we had a few concerns as generally customers don’t really like being told what to do and it can be difficult to manage people’s expectations.

“But everyone was really good. I think it’s a confidence thing - if they didn’t feel safe they wouldn’t come shopping.“We have also been doing lots on social media to gear people up.”

Staff have been praised by customers for making sure people know where to go and where hand sanitising points are.

Southend councillor Daniel Cowan, said: “Retail staff, the police and the council’s community safety team have done a great job to make the high street as safe as they can for shoppers to return under the current rules and the general public have largely taken to the new ‘normal’ like ducks to water.

“The world as we knew it has changed and there’s no guarantee we will go back to how it was before but we adapt.”