WAS the closure of Mary Jenkins’ Farm Shop in the centre of Wellington a shock? Maybe, to some, but a year ago shopkeeper Paul Shipp told me he was seriously considering selling if profit margins did not improve.

He reckoned he was only making half the money he was during the pandemic.

He described Wellington as a ‘ghost town’ on Saturday afternoons whereas other town centres were busy.

He also said he lost 20 per cent of his takings when the post office in the One Shop closed.

His main concern at the time was the amount of money he had ploughed into the business - £100,000 he told me.

The Mary Jenkins shop is right in the middle of Wellington - you can’t miss it. But still it appears to have struggled.

No one wants to see any shop close - and this is such a shame. Obviously his plea for more support was not taken up.

However, there were plenty of customers when the farm shop opened to sell off its produce on Wednesday!

_____

IT seems that some patients at Wellington Medical Centre are still abusing staff, with some having recently quit because of such behaviour.

The Wellington Weekly highlighted the problem last July with some patients facing the threat of being struck off as frustrations over lengthy waits for appointments boiled over into abuse of medical centre staff.

The situation at the centre had become so bad that a number of staff had left their jobs over the offensive behaviour of some patients.

What is wrong with these people and this country? Staff at the centre can only do their best under trying circumstances. The last thing they want is for a patient to be rude to them.

You’re not going to get things done any quicker if you act in such a way. In fact the culprits should be slung out of the centre and told not to come back.

The problem actually goes back to Covid lockdowns when face-to-face appointments with doctors became an exception rather than the norm.

I’m afraid we’re never going to go back to the days when you could easily make an appointment to see a doctor within a couple of days.

And any loss of staff means the medical centre has to spend time in training up new recruits. Which in turn puts even more pressure on staff.

____

YES, it is that time of the year again - for hayfever. One in five of us in this country suffer from some kind of allergy at this time of the year.

For us the recent wet and cold weather has been quite welcoming. Don’t get me wrong, I like hot weather but not around this time when the leaves from trees are just beginning to come out.

Wet weather dampens down the pollen which means less itchy eyes and running noses.

But for some it can be worse than that. They have to use an inhaler and try to stay indoors.

It can be particularly difficult for students, especially when they are taking exams. There’s nothing worse than feeling dreadful when you are already nervous and keyed up. You want to be at your best for such an important day.

____

LAST weekend marked the official opening of Wellington Bowling Club’s outdoor season - and to me that means summer’s here.

The opening was carried out by 100-year-old Dick Northam (pictured) who was assisted by club president Ann Cowling. In his younger days Dick was very prominent in the sport as a coach and international umpire.

Afterwards all of the club’s members turned out in their whites for an official opening day picture.

The club have just completed their indoor season where Mike Connor became the first player ever to win two of the club’s major indoor trophies.

In the men’s final Mike gained a thrilling one-shot victory over Nick Channon, another of the club’s top players.