Need or prefer a quieter shopping experience this Christmas? Supermarkets and shopping centres can be stressful for people who see, hear or feel the world in a different way. Thankfully, lots of UK shops offer a calmer setting to grab those important gifts for the ones you love.
Why do some shops not have a quiet hour?
Which supermarkets have quiet hours?
Which shopping centres have quiet hours?
Why do some shops not have a quiet hour?
Some people have different sensory needs to everyone else. This could be because they have dementia, autism, or they’re neurodiverse.
At least 1% of people in the UK are autistic, but the numbers are thought to be much higher than this. They can experience over or under sensitivity to things like light or sound.
This can be a positive thing and a strength for some people, but it can also make tackling the Christmas hustle and bustle uncomfortable or distressing.
Some might even stay clear of the shops completely. To help stop this, lots of big UK shopping centres or supermarkets have created ‘quiet hours’, or quiet times, to help people who prefer a calmer shopping environment.
What is a quiet hour?
It’s an hour, or a couple of hours, when supermarkets and shopping centres try to become less noisy and intimidating.
They’ll usually turn their music off, dim the lights, not make announcements, and even silence or lower the beep when you’re at the checkout.
You’ll also see signs that encourage other shoppers to be quiet and move their trolleys respectfully.
Which supermarkets have quiet hours?
• Morrisons has a quiet hour between 2pm and 3pm, on Monday to Thursday, between 9am and 10am on Saturdays, and the first hour of every Sunday
• Asda has one between 2pm and 3pm, from Monday to Thursday
• Tesco’s is from 9am to 10am on Wednesdays and Saturdays
• Lidl have ‘quiet evenings’ every Tuesday from 6pm to 8pm
Which shopping centres have quiet hours?
Westfield London (near Shepherd’s Bush) turn all its music off, to support your sensory needs.
They do this from 10am to 11am between Monday and Saturday, and from 12pm to 1pm on Sundays.
This Gateshead shopping centre runs its quiet hour on the first Tuesday of every month from 9am to 10am, and on the next Saturday that follows this from 9am to 10am. That means Tuesday 3 December and Saturday 7 December this month.
On top of all the usual things you can expect from a quiet hour, their leisure centres take part in this too.
They also have a sensory backpack with sensory toys, and a quiet room outside of the lower Blue Mall. Just press the buzzer and their security team will let you in.
Trafford Centre, Greater Manchester
Every Wednesday from 10am to 11am, all the stores and restaurants in Trafford Centre do simple things, where they can, to create an autism-friendly experience. They’ll lower the music and dim the lights.
To save you getting up early, Kent’s biggest shopping centre has quiet hours between 4pm and 6pm, every Tuesday afternoon.
You can grab a free Sunflower Lanyard too. This discreetly lets staff know if you need some extra help, or just a little more time.
Lakeside Village Shopping Outlet, Essex
This well-known outlet has a weekly quiet hour. Every Saturday morning from 9.30am to 10.30am, they turn everything down and dedicate this hour to creating a welcoming environment for neurodivergent customers.
Liverpool One, Liverpool and Meadowhall, Sheffield
Have some toys on your shopping list? The Entertainer has a quiet hour every day, from 10am, for the first hour they’re open.
They do this in all 171 stores across the country, including in Liverpool One and in Meadowhall, in Sheffield. They turn off any toy demos they’re showing and make everything a quieter and calmer experience.
Because of this and the way they train their staff and donate some of their profits, they’ve been awarded an Autism Friendly Award by the National Autistic Society.
This Northern Ireland shopping centre has trained their staff to be autism spectrum disorder (ASD) aware and dementia-friendly, so they understand people’s sensory needs better.
You can hire a free sensory pack while you shop. This includes ear defenders, a sensory fan, radar key, fidget toy, light up spike ball, and in case of emergency (ICE) wristband. You can get these from Customer Services, on the Lower Ground, next to Rituals.
Why do some shops not have a quiet hour?
Some supermarkets, like Sainsbury’s, have trialled quiet hours in the past, but do not offer any right now.
There are companies who are encouraging change, like Sensory Street, who help make public spaces more inclusive for autistic people. They published this guide about sensory-inclusiveness, to support supermarkets.
This calls for supermarkets to do more than just offer quiet hours. It asks them to think about how a fire alarm can affect people, how they can train their staff as ‘autism champions’, and more.
Remember to check the website of the shop or supermarket you want to visit to see if they have quiet hours, before you go.
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