Thousands descend on Sheffield city centre as shopping returns after three-month-long lockdown

Since all non-essential shops closed when the UK coronavirus lockdown began in late March, only a handful of mini-supermarkets in the city centre have remained open.

I live at Park Hill flats, and going into town has been a strange and unsettling experience, with Sheffield resembling a ghost town rather than the bustling hive of activity it normally is.

All that changed on Monday morning, however, as clothes shops and department stores opened their doors for the first time in almost three months.

Queues formed immediately at Primark on the Moor as shoppers jostled to be the first in line, while at Sports Direct on High Street hundreds waited to get inside.

While people have been gone, guidance on where to stand and how to queue has been fixed to pavements, while stores have pinned up safety instructions and public pumps have been installed dispensing free hand sanitiser.

If someone had shown you pictures of the scene just six months ago you wouldn’t have believed them, but it is an indication of just how covid-19 has affected all our lives that no one batted an eyelid.

While the city centre wasn’t perhaps as busy as it would normally be on a Monday morning, the change from just a few weeks ago was remarkable.

Both the Moor and Fargate were thronged with shoppers eager to start spending again, while others simply enjoyed relaxing in an environment that felt like the city was returning to normality.

Mazher Iqbal, Sheffield Council’s cabinet member for business was there, looking pleased with himself, as were a higher than usual number of police officers, presumably for reassurance.

Of those shopping, some had come in for items they or their growing kids desperately needed, while others just fancied a browse.

They were making the first few tentative steps in a process that will take many months, but is essential if the city is to survive what will be the biggest recession this country has ever seen.

People might disagree about the timing of it all - but it was genuinely nice to see Sheffield bustling again.