Iceland is well-used by young and old

ICELAND in the town is not just a freezer shop. It has all you need for a basic shop used by many Bromsgrove people old and young and in between.

It also has the added bonus of friendly helpful staff, a home delivery service where you can choose your groceries and pay at the till in cash if you prefer not to do online shopping.

And there is a discount on Tuesdays for pension age people which really helps some Bromsgrove residents.

The staff have been there for some time – a sign of good management and they treat everyone as a valuable customer with a friendly word or two.

I have shopped in both Iceland stores and would choose the town one every time.

Not everyone wants to or can afford to buy deals and bigger packets and although staff are courteous in the Iceland Warehouse they are not quite on a par with the town ones.

Iceland in my mind, you are closing the wrong store.

Sally W

A Farmfoods or Heron Foods should take its place

In answer to what stores we would like to see in Bromsgrove.

I would like to see a Farmfoods, or a Heron Foods supermarket

Both are very good with competitive prices.

Martin Matthews

Free parking and support for independent shops needed

FREE parking in Bromsgrove town centre all the time is essential.

People also need to support the independent shops, eg the Mill Lane Bakery stall in the market. Give them an empty shop for free for a couple years, and it will increase the footfall in the town.

You won’t because all the money goes to Redditch, it’s a shame.

Brian Sacks

There are loads of stores Bromsgrove needs

IN answer to the stores we need in Bromsgrove, definitely a Sports Direct or JD.

There is nowhere else to get sports stuff from unless you go to the Kingfisher Centre in Redditch.

An M&S Food Hall would be good, along with a McDonalds or Burger King, Primark, a small Tesco Express or Sainsburys Local, Pizza Hut, TK Maxx, Next, a small DunElm, H&M.

You have to make Bromsgrove worth the hassle of parking and going in.

Maria

Mill Lane store is always busy and convenient

I AM a regular customer at Iceland and when my sister told me of its proposed closure, I checked online.

All I found was a denial from Iceland that the store was closing….from 2018.

So, not the first time this story has appeared.

The Mill Lane store is always busy when I shop, especially on Tuesdays with over 60s like myself taking advantage of the discount.

I did visit the Food Warehouse last Tuesday, but it is large, unwelcoming and a long walk out of town, and while Mill Lane literally adjoins the bus station, no buses travel to the Retail Park, especially for Sidemoor.

Iceland/ Food Warehouse would lose me as a customer.

Many of us over 60s have no car, and carrying heavy bags to the bus station is either daunting, difficult or impossible.

Judging by the number of customers in FW last Tuesday, if I were Iceland I would be looking at the potential benefit of closing that store.

I would guess more shopped at Mill Lane, it is usually very busy.

Neil Godwin

Iceland closure is ‘ridiculous decision’

WHAT a ridiculous, thoughtless decision by Iceland.

There are a lot of elderly people in Bromsgrove which use Iceland in the town centre and I am sure they will use Asda rather than walk to the Food Warehouse up the Birmingham Road.

If it was not for Asda, Bromsgrove would have very little in the way of shopping, with so many other shops closing and two banks now shutting.

Bromsgrove will be known as a town of coffee shops and charity shops!

Ivan Graham

Council needs to reduce rates to get make shops more appealing

Maybe the council should make the investment of a shop more appealing, such as reducing the rates which in the High Street are very expensive.

Whereas on the fringes of Bromsgrove it’s a lot less.

Dickie

Important to talk about mental health

AS WE enter the new year, it is never been more important to talk about our mental health.

We are in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis which is only likely to worsen.

This, on top of the fall-out from the Covid-19 pandemic means it is essential that we now look out for each other and our mental health.

We know that talking about our mental health can help us feel less alone, more able to cope and encouraged to seek support if we need to.

That’s why we are holding Time to Talk Day on Thursday, February 2, 2023.

This is the nation’s biggest conversation about mental health.

Last year, nearly 2million conversations were generated.

We are asking you and your readers to make space in the day for a conversation about mental health.

Whether that’s texting a friend, chatting to a colleague or neighbour, or raising awareness in your community.

This is a chance for all of us to talk, to listen, and to change lives. Thank you.

Sophie Corlett, Interim CEO of Mind

Mark Winstanley, Chief Executive of Rethink Mental Illness

Rebecca Birkbeck, Director of Community and Member Participation at Co-op

Editor’s Comment

SOME of the stories in this week’s paper about losses in Bromsgrove make for depressing reading.The latest is the Princess of Wales Community Hospital coffee shop which has been there for many years for patients and staff alike.

Add to that Iceland disappearing from Mill Lane, M and Co and Natwest from the High Street and uncertainty over the Ryland Centre’s future and people must be wondering ‘what next?’.

A long-term plan is needed for the town and district.

We Welcome Your Letters…..

What pressing issues do you feel need addressing in Bromsgrove, Rubery, Droitwich and South Birmingham? Send us your views to [email protected] or [email protected]