Customers at a number of Sainsbury’s stores in Greater Manchester have been left fuming as the result of a policy requiring receipts to be scanned before they can exit
Upon leaving stores, shoppers at Sainsbury’s supermarkets in Fallowfield and Salford are being confronted with automated barriers that can only be opened by scanning their receipt – or by contacting a store assistant.
Many have taken to Reddit to slam the new policy, with several claiming it is a ‘pointless waste of money and time’ and others saying they have been left ‘feeling like thieves’.
The receipt barriers, some shoppers say, only ‘makes life harder’ – yet it appears that Sainsbury’s is planning to roll them out at other stores across the UK too, following on from the introduction of cameras at its self-service stations in recent years.
The move by the supermarket echoes similar moves by the American supermarket Walmart, which is notorious for staff approaching ‘random’ customers at its exits and asking them to produce their receipts as they leave stores.
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A series of recent posts on Reddit exposes several threads in which users commented on the introduction of the receipt barriers, both here in Greater Manchester as well as further afield.
The social media site reveals that stores in Fallowfield and Salford have both become unpopular since they started adopting the policy, which requires customers to scan receipts in order for them to exit.
If receipts are not scanned, barriers prevent customers from leaving until a store assistant is contacted.
One Reddit user has posted a picture of a notice in one of the Sainsbury’s store, reading: “We’ve introduced new barriers as you leave this store.”
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“You’ll need to take your receipt and scan this on the barcode reader in front of the barriers.”
The original poster said they were ‘not a fan of how this is spreading’, leading other users on the site to agree.
Another person said the policy was a ‘pointless waste of money and time’ that ‘just makes everyone’s life harder, whilst another customer added: “Looks like Sainsbury’s can get f****d then.”
The installation of the barriers has left some customers “feeling like thieves” since their arrival last year but it appears that the supermarket has no plans to suspend the rollout, despite the backlash from shoppers.
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A Sainsbury’s spokesperson said that the barriers are “one of a range of security measures” installed in a “small number of stores” but would not disclose how many it has installed in the UK.
Featured image –Twitter
Food & Drink
A Manc’s guide to: Prestwich, the Bury neighbourhood with brilliant bars, restaurants, green space and more
Daisy Jackson
Prestwich has become a magnet for young professionals in recent years, a slightly more affordable cousin of Greater Manchester suburbs like Chorlton and Didsbury.
But it’s not just the house prices that draw people to this neighbourhood in Bury.
It’s the green space, the blossoming food and drink scene, the easy-peasy transport links, and the community.
This is a suburb where you can walk for miles through fields and woods without crossing a road – but can be sipping a negroni just minutes later.
Despite its proximity to the M60, it’s not uncommon to spot deer strutting around just beyond the housing estates of the main village.
In the world of chippies, that’s a very big deal indeed.
With fish and spuds sourced fresh and fried in beef dripping, this place alone is almost enough to sell people on the pull of Prestwich.
They’re expanding into the unit next door too, where there’ll be more space to dining in as well as a bar where you can grab a pint while you wait.
But there’s plenty more to the neighbourhood’s food and drink scene.
Cuckoo, a neighbourhood bar in Prestwich, Greater Manchester. Credit: The Manc Group
Some of the frontrunners here include Cuckoo (a cosy neighbourhood bar hosting cinema nights and serving top-notch pizzas), All The Shapes (seasonal brunches and out-of-this-world Mexican food, plus loads of craft beers and cocktails), and the Crooked Man (a charming beer bar that feels like you’ve wandered into someone’s living room).
Hospitality businesses from elsewhere in the region keep heading here too, like Croma (which has now shut its city centre site but says Prestwich is thriving), Wine & Wallop, and Dokes, a pizza joint from the same team behind Elnecot in Ancoats. Rudy’s is also eyeing up a site in Prestwich for the first time.
More recent additions include Nonna’s, an Italian deli, The Pearl, a delightful neighbourhood bistro with a wine window.
There’s a phenomenal Middle Eastern restaurant scene in Prestwich, with Lebanese restaurant Remal happily rubbing shoulders with the always-busy Anatolian Grill and Istanbul Grill.
Dokes Pizzeria in PrestwichThe Pearl in Prestwich
A little further away from the main drag of Bury New Road is The Goods In, from the same team behind the aforementioned All The Shapes.
They’ve taken an old MOT garage and turned it into a sunny yellow hangout spot, serving loaded flatbreads, great beer and top-quality coffees right on the edge of Heaton Park.
And further towards the city centre is Osma, a Scandinavian-style restaurant fronted by Michelin-trained Danielle Heron which calmly marched its way straight into the Michelin Guide.
When you merge Prestwich with its neighbouring suburbs, you come up with the second-largest Jewish community in the UK – and that means this is the best place in Greater Manchester to come for bagels and deli goods.
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Coopers Let’s Fress deliTriple B in Prestwich
Cooper’s Let’s Fress is one of the big players, drawing queues out the door every Sunday with its £6 bagel special (five bagels, with sides of smoked salmon, cream cheese, tuna mayonnaise and egg salad).
There are less traditional bagels too, with Eat New York’s Triple B now based in Prestwich serving cheeseburger bagels and buffalo chicken burgers.
Put the stretchy pants on before you come for a day out in Prestwich, basically.
Shopping
Grape to Grain wine shop in Prestwich. Credit: The Manc GroupGrape to Grain wine shop in Prestwich. Credit: The Manc Group
Prestwich’s high street isn’t one that’s necessarily been designed for visitors.
There’s not much in the way of achingly-cool boutiques or artisan bakeries.
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But what it is is actually much better – it’s a rare example of a high street full of essential, independently-operated retailers.
There’s a bike shop, an optician’s, a hardware store, a pet shop, beauty salons, newsagents and gift shops with barely a big chain in sight (just don’t look over there at the Costa and Superdrug on the precinct).
Some of the most exciting shops you’ll find here specialise in food and drink, like Keg Cask and Bottle, where you can pick up a few cans of craft beer and sit in the shop to drink them – they recently expanded into the unit next door too, for extra drinking room.
Grape to Grain has a presence here too on the corner of Bury New Road and Church Lane, where, again, you can crack open your purchase and drink it on a seat by the windows.
Lupo Caffe Italiano. Credi: The Manc GroupInside Lupo in Prestwich
Back down the road towards the city centre you’ll find Lupo, a brilliant Italian business that’s moved onto an industrial estate to sell its homemade doughnuts and pasta dishes as well as imported Italian produce.
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It’s a real local highlight, sitting outside Lupo in the car park with an Aperol spritz and a gigantic bowl of freshly-made pasta.
There are beautiful, antique-inspired homewares to be found in Rose & Lee, from stunning furniture to bunches of dried flowers.
And for those who call Prestwich home, there’s the holy trinity of supermarkets all in a row – an M&S Simply Food (for pay day), a big 24-hour Tesco, and an Aldi. Genuinely, what a treat.
Nightlife and hotels
Parklife festival. Credit: The Manc GroupFred Again at Parklife festival 2023. Credit: The Manc Group
As a densely residential suburb of Greater Manchester, Prestwich’s nightlife scene tends to wrap up fairly promptly around 11pm.
Very sensible.
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The star of Prestwich after dark is Take Me To Church, a clubnight laced with disco, funk and soul.
They say: ‘We’re not kids, but we still wanted to go somewhere that played the kind of music that we loved to dance to without having to wait ’till daft-o-clock in town for a cab home. We wanted somewhere local, but there was nothing – so we did it ourselves.”
There’s also Cape to Cuba, where Caribbean-inspired burgers and poutine are matched with a buzzing atmosphere, you’ll find a party that runs until 1am.
If you can make it through Cape to Cuba’s door without being handed a shot of rum, you’re a rare breed.
Then there’s events company So Prestwich, which whips up daytime events but also pulls out a banger of an Indie night.
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The Makers Market has also recently started holding artisan markets at Prestwich precinct, where locals can pick up freshly-made cakes and handmade gifts.
An, of course, the biggest party of the year takes place on Prestwich’s doorstep – Parklife festival.
80,000 people per day flock here every summer to party in Heaton Park, with this year’s line-up including Doja Cat, Disclosure, J Hus and Becky Hill.
In terms of hotels… erm… there’s a Premier Inn? Probably just stay in the city centre, to be honest.
Culture
Prestwich Clough through the seasons. Credit: The Manc Group
The biggest selling point of Prestwich has to be its green space – and it’s not just Heaton Park.
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The neighbourhood is bookmarked on the other end by Philips Park, Drinkwater Park, Prestwich Clough and Waterdale Meadow, all blending into one another.
This is the part of town where you can walk (or run) for miles without having to stop for pesky traffic.
There are mountain bike trails, panoramic views of the city skyline, fishing lakes, historic buildings and play areas.
You can spot the park’s resident heron hanging out, weirdly, right next to the M60, and say hello to the cows and horses who graze in the fields.
A Mark E. Smith mural that was part of Prestwich Arts Festival. Credit: Prestwich Arts Festival
Prestwich’s culture really does revolve around the great outdoors – there are tennis courts, bowling greens and basketball courts at St Mary’s Park too.
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This part of town has always hosted one of the suburb’s biggest cultural events every summer, when Festwich pulls up into town – this year it’s getting bigger than ever and moving to Heaton Park.
It’s the largest tribute act festival in the UK and brings fairground rides, live music, and surprisingly affordable festival beers to the fields every year.
Watch out for the Prestwich Arts Festival (a community art trail) and the phenomenal work left behind – like the hyper-realistic murals of Mark E. Smith and Victoria Wood.
Property
Much like the rest of the country, Prestwich’s property prices are on the up – but they still come in significantly cheaper than suburbs south of the city centre.
Properties in Prestwich had an overall average price of £266,646 over the last year.
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The majority of sales in Prestwich during the last year were semi-detached properties, selling for an average price of £283,494. Terraced properties sold for an average of £234,123, with flats fetching £143,959.
There’s a lovely mix of Victorian-era terraces, modern apartments and huge sprawling townhouses (Guest Road is goals).
Transport
Prestwich is an absolute doddle to get to by tram, with both Heaton Park and Prestwich tram stops only a 15 minute ride from Manchester Victoria.
There are regular buses too, including the express buses that will take you onwards to Ramsbottom and into Lancashire.
For those who drive, the suburb is straight off the M60 and M62 motorways. A breeze.
Featured image: The Manc Group
Food & Drink
The Salford deli with the best name in Manchester has a new home — and it’s even more of a hidden gem than ever
Danny Jones
If you’ve ever ventured down Chapel Street in Salford or sat with a pint in Bexley Square, you’ll probably have noticed the shop, cafe and deli space that once sat on the corner.
More accurately, if you know the spot, you’ll likely have chuckled to yourself when looking up at the sign and reading the name above the front door: Deli Lama. Still makes us smirk to this day.
The best-named Wholefoods Shop and Cafe sat as a literal cornerstone of the Salford community for over a decade and was a real favourite amongst locals but has since moved premises, and whilst it is more out of the way than it used to be, it has only reaffirmed Deli Lama’s hidden gem status even more.
Now located in the old Islington Mill just across the road — which currently serves not only as a residential space but as a key cultural hub for creatives and artisans — it’s arguably situated even deeper in the heart and soul of old Salford than ever. You’ve just got to know where to find them.
And that’s where we come in. After initially heading out on a weekend and wanting to enjoy a brew and a bite to eat, we decided to go on the hunt for their new venue and ventured down James Street to stumble across the mill itself.
An unassuming space, to say the least, you’d be forgiven for thinking it’s still out of use at first glance, but once you spot the boards pointing you in the right direction of Deli Lama and the other names who have popped up in here, it does feel like you’ve stumbled across the best-kept secret in town.
Walking down the tunnel past the notice boards and the other indoor studios, you emerge out into the quiet little courtyard to find the deli’s new location, with fairy lights in the window and the old still just propped up against the wall as they’ve had little time for finessing — they’re just cracking on.
Although the space might be a little rough and ready in parts, what it achieves is that genuine rustic feeling that so many other trendy new openings attempt to contrive, whilst also carrying over a sense of familiarity from the former venue.
This Salford deli, cafe and Manc wholefoods shop is more than meets the eye. (Credit: The Manc Group)
In the spacious new spot, you’ll find the same cupboard and pantry staples from rice, pasta and pulses to organic fruit and veg, bakery items, preserves, condiments and so on that you would find in the old shop, only now there’s room for more of anything.
There are also shelves of organic tea and coffee, fridges full of chilled drinks, soups and freshly prepared ciabattas, as well as literally the best vegan cookie we’ve ever had. They even make their own seitan.
Looking at the menu itself, as well as a regular rotation of specials, they do vegetarian brekkies that will knock your socks off like the Caribbean scramble, as well as plant-based breakfast burrito that we devoured within seconds alongside a big healthy portion of their chilli bean soup.
Topped with jalapenos, herbs and a lovely dollop of guacamole which thickens up the texture the more you swirl it in, just like when you used to dip your buttery bread into the bowl at home, it was divine and we could have had ladles of the stuff if it wasn’t for all the other customers ordering a portion as well.
Banging vegan sausages.The deli counter.Unreal.Not just the best-named deli in Manchester but some of the best food you’ll find in Salford too.
Speaking of the crowd, you can tell this is a real haven for artisans and the other residents. The mill has stood there for 200 years and as it now boasts apartments upstairs, virtually everyone living and working here has become a regular, with people from all ages and walks of life.
As well as being a quaint little creative corner, Islington Mill is also important in the LGBTQ+ community, with the Islington Mill is Queer audio series recorded here, not to mention serving as a key part of the council’s ‘The Other City’ fund and artist-led community project bigging up Salford as its own entity.
As for Deli Lama themselves, they’re a team of just three led by founders, owners and local couple, Linda and Lincoln, who opened up the original shop 12 years ago but have been set up here since November, insisting they are “much happier at home here” and now starting to regain their rhythm.
Together for two decades themselves, you can tell this isn’t just their livelihood, it’s a passion they’ve bonded over and a way of continuing to contribute to the area that clearly still means so much to them.
It already feels so vibrant and welcoming.Walls full of produce.Credit: The Manc Eats
What this small but incredibly dedicated team manages to do, beyond just delivering high-quality produce, is make every person who steps in the door feel like their best mate and part of the family. We’re not exaggerating when we say they knew everyone’s name in the two hours we spent there.
Even from the cosy little snug where you can sit on an armchair in the window next to some plants and a little poster wall promoting upcoming community events, to the little kitchen just behind the counter, you do get that feeling of being in someone’s home even with the big window and skylight above.
There’s plenty of bustle next door and across the courtyard from the pottery place, needlework studio and tufters also based within Islington Mill, but somehow this place manages to help block out all the business of town just down the road and even outside is relatively tranquil.
We were only supposed to come in for a coffee but we ended up feeling so relaxed we didn’t want to leave and ended up eating twice, buying a takeaway butty and some stuff from the fridge just because we fancied it.
Could spend hours chilling here.Salford coffee to boot.Get the lemonade, trust us.
More importantly, the wholefoods, zero-waste and almost entirely vegan approach means that Deli Lama is one of the most sustainable, sourcing directly from local co-operative Organic North and even eyeing plans to set up their own in the future.
They also cater events and private functions, including a substantial corporate do or two when they can, and might also be making their groceries and food menu available on Deliveroo later this year.
It’s also crucially one of the most reasonably priced cafes and stores of its kind you’ll find anywhere so close to the city limits which, in a cost of living crisis, should never be overlooked or left unapplauded.
Please give the wonderful team at Deli Lama Wholefoods Shop and Cafe in Salford a go — you will not regret going for the short wander to find them and we promise, you’ll fall in love with it just like we did.