A SUPERMARKET in Verwood is to introduce a quieter hour for customers who would benefit from a calmer shopping trip.

Morrisons has created the initiative with the support of the National Autistic Society.

Many people who are autistic or those with autistic children can find shopping in a supermarket an anxious experience due to the noise associated with it. The quieter hour, which will take place every Saturday from 9-10am, will see the store dim the lights, turn music and radio off, avoid making tannoy announcements, reduce the movement of trolleys and baskets, and turn checkout beeps and other electrical noises down.

Morrisons carried out a trial earlier in the year in three of its stores and found one in five customers had a friend or family member with autism.

The supermarket will also work to improve awareness among staff of the issues autistic customers face in store.

Daniel Cadey, from the National Autistic Society, said the quieter hour was a "step in the right direction for autistic people who find supermarket shopping a real struggle".

"Around 700,000 people are on the autism spectrum in the UK. This means they see, hear and feel the world differently to other people, often in a more intense way," he added.

Mark Gissing at Morrisons in Verwood said: “Our initial trials showed there is a need for a quieter shopping experience. We hope that these changes make a real difference for some of our customers at our store.”