Clothing giant Primark will open stores all night and employ extra security staff to manage queues.

The chain's Bluewater store will be among 11 to open overnight on Friday.

When doors open at 8am tomorrow, they will not close until closing time on Saturday evening.

The company says it is opening for longer hours in a bid to keep queues under control and by giving Christmas shoppers as much time as possible to buy their gifts.

Security has been upped by about 70% and extra Covid safety measures will be in force.

Live queuing times will be available via the company's Twitter feed giving hourly queue waiting times at Bluewater and the other sites operating overnight shopping to allow shoppers to find the quieter periods.

Extended opening hours are in place across all Primark stores in the country.

Simon Gibbs, Retail Director for Primark UK and Northern Europe said: “The safety of our employees and customers remains our highest priority. The ability to stay open through the night has meant more shoppers can shop safely with us over the festive season.

“We would like to thank customers for their continued cooperation on our social distancing policy and remind them to be considerate of our safety measures, and of others, both while queuing outside and in-store.”

Extensive health and safety measures are in place across all stores, including a strict social distancing protocol, limits on the number of customers allowed in store and requiring the use of face coverings in queues and in store.

The company says it's also invested heavily in safety measures such as perspex screens and sanitiser stations.

For more details visit the Primark website.

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