If you were stranded on a desert island and could take one thing, what would it be? A good book, your favourite music, chocolate? It’s a benchmark question that any z-list celebrity is asked on their entrance into superstardom, but when Stainland’s doctors surgery relocated four years ago, and the village was realistically faced with becoming little more than a desert island, chocolate and books probably weren’t at the top of their wish list of local provisions. So when Stainland pharmacy decided to camp out with the islanders, the more important stuff started to become clear!
Anne Cawdron is a bit of a special lady- she has worked in the pharmacy for the past few years, and has co-owned it since December. It really has become a lifeline for local residents, especially the elderly and those without cars, because now the nearest doctors surgery and pharmacy is in West Vale, to which public transport is pretty sparse (and the hill might not be too bad on the way down, but even the fittest amongst us would struggle up that on the way home!) When even the local newsagents shut down two years ago, it has certainly proven the importance of having a local shop that’s willing to go that extra mile for its customers.
They have their own driver who collects prescriptions from West Vale and delivers them to a number of the local residents, a good service, but not too different from many other pharmacies I hear you say?! Well, when they also openly encourage customers to let them know if there’s anything else they need delivering, like bits and bobs from the supermarket, that’s when you start to realise you’re onto something a bit different!
With just a beauticians and a hairdressers as business neighbours, Anne now makes sure they stock the important stuff a lot of us take for granted, such as postage stamps, they also have a cash machine and a facility for people to pay their bills! They also get a small amount of stock in, especially when requested, that might not be considered the norm in a pharmacy!
As for the deliveries, Anne notes that they have often done trips to customers with provisions even when they aren’t even taking prescriptions! Now does that goes far beyond what is expected of a local pharmacist or what! Supposedly the 3 most common requests are milk, eggs, and the Courier!
So here’s to Anne and everyone at Stainland Pharmacy who are doing their bit (well, a lot actually) to help their local community as much as they can, that’s what we like to see and its things like this that make the world a nicer place. Our cockles are well and truly warmed!
350 Stainland Rd, Stainland, Halifax, West Yorkshire HX4 9EH
01422 374 233
