Which shops can stay open until 10pm as lockdown lifts? Where to go for late night shopping in the UK

As the roadmap out of lockdown continues to unfold, shops have been told they can stay open until 10pm under new late night shopping laws. 

These laws have been introduced to get the high street back on its feet following a year of multiple lockdowns, where all retailers had to close their doors to customers, a setback which has resulted in an estimated loss of £27bn for stores across the country.

This new allowance will enable participating shops in England to open late six nights a week when the lockdown restrictions lift from April 12, as long as customers adhere to the new 'stay local' advice and follow social distancing rules, including those on how many people can meet indoors.

Which shops can stay open until 10pm?

These stores have confirmed they're staying open late from April 12 in England:

• Primark
• IKEA
• Argos
• Home Bargains
• Zara
• John Lewis

But it's not just the evenings which stores can open later, they can also open their doors earlier too. Shops will be able to extend their opening hours from 7am to 10pm to help customers to avoid peak times and ease transport pressures, according to the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government.

Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick said, “To support businesses to reopen and recover, I’ve extended measures to allow shops to stay open for longer. This is part of a package of support to help reopen our shops and high streets safely, backed by £56m."

He continued, “This will provide a much-needed boost for many businesses – protecting jobs, reducing pressure on public transport and supporting people and communities to continue to visit their high streets safely and shop locally.”

It was also confirmed that flexible working hours on construction sites will be extended and the government will allow food deliveries to supermarkets over more time periods.

Other measures will be implemented for the hospitality industry too, who are able to open outdoor seating areas with the rule of six at the same time as the shops reopen. Under the new law, pubs, bars and restaurants can put up marquees to allow for more seating capacity and Covid-secure dining.

When are all shops opening in the UK?

All shops are opening in the UK at different times but most will reopen their doors from April 12.

Whether shops are taking part in the extended opening hours or not, they'll be allowed to open from this date under the government's plan out of lockdown.

England's non-essential stores can reopen from April 12 but click-and-collect services have been allowed to continue throughout the third lockdown.

Scotland's non-essential stores are set to reopen from April 26 under their separate lockdown roadmap. Some restrictions on retail will lift before this though, as click-and-collect services will be able to resume from April 5. Garden centres and homeware stores can also welcome back customers on this earlier date.

Wales began their reopening of non-essential retail in March, with customers once again able to purchase non-essential items from the stores that remained open throughout the lockdown and garden centres allowed to reopen. Other restrictions on stores opening will be lifted from April 12, according to First Minister Mark Drakeford.

From April 1, garden centres and plant nurseries have been allowed to offer a click-and-collect service in Northern Ireland. Much like England and Wales though, other non-essential stores will be able to reopen again to the public from April 12.