Vista bookshop marks 9 years in Oakham High Street
Volunteers have celebrated nine years of fundraising through a shop that supports people with sight loss.
Vista in High Street, Oakham, is a bustling bookshop that sells fiction, children’s books and large print titles, as well as a host of specialist volumes including histories, biographies, hobby books and humour.
Among the 20 volunteers that make sure the shop is open between 10am to 3pm Tuesdays to Saturdays each week is Sue Tyers, a former mayor of Oakham who has also chaired the governors of the town’s Southfields School.
Sue became involved in the shop before covid, when Vista was a charity shop selling clothes, jewellery and bric-a-brac, as well as books, having wanted to ‘keep herself busy’ in retirement.
“We volunteer not just because it helps others - it’s also good for us,” she said.
“We get to meet people and talk to a lot of nice customers and donors. Because it’s a bookshop, people feel they can come in for a browse and a chat, and we have our regulars.
“After covid, the decision was made to just sell books, and I especially like the format of the shop now. We can keep everything looking good and it has a lovely feel to it.”
Fellow volunteer sales assistant Janet Hughes has a specialist role - as do many of those who help in the shop. She looks after the popular history and war books section, which has a prominent display on the shop floor.
“I make sure the stock is rotated each week, with a new selection of books put out to keep the shelves fresh,” she said. “This helps with sales.”
Their longest-serving volunteer, Margaret Catlow, has been at the shop since 2016 and now looks after the accounts. She said they are on track for a good financial year, potentially raising even more than last year’s £25,000-plus.
That money helps to fund Vista’s residential homes for people with sight loss and other complex needs, which are located in and serve the Leicestershire and Rutland area.
The charity also runs a variety of vision support services used by nearly 8,500 people, which helps to make education and employment more accessible, and includes providing adaptions and training in schools, the workplace and at home.
It is people like Joscelyn Knill, a customer and donor at the Oakham Vista shop, who help this care continue.
While donating a selection of books and a beautifully presented tin of children’s Puffin audiobooks on CD, she explained that her grandmother is blind and relied on audio books, and therefore the Vista shop was a place Joscelyn is keen to support.
“I always donate books to this bookshop, and now my grandma has gone into a care home I’ve been able to sort out more of the books she had, and bring them here for other people to read.
“The thing is, I always end up coming out with a few books for myself too,” she added, with a smile.
Most books at Vista cost £1.50 each, with some collectible volumes and other titles individually priced.
Anyone wishing to donate books or audiobooks can drop them off during the shop opening hours.
Potential new volunteers who can dedicate some time each week to helping out in the shop are also welcome to pop in, or to call the volunteer line on 0116 249 8843.
