Shop owners in Stone who sell fireworks all ensured that proper age checks were carried out during a county council test purchase operation.
Trading standards officers visited 60 shops before Bonfire Night across Staffordshire, including some in Stone, with volunteers under the age of 18 – the legal age to buy fireworks. Every shop tested ensured age checks were made and the volunteers were refused the sale.
The test purchasing was part of Operation Good Guy, a firework safety initiative run by the county council and its partner organisations, and the Take Care and Be Aware campaign.
In addition to the test purchasing, the trading standards team visited 142 shops across the county to check fireworks were being stored properly.They found that strict storage and sales requirements were observed and complied with.
County cabinet member for communities and culture Ben Adams said it was good news that shop owners took their responsibilities seriously. He said: “Ensuring that fireworks are stored safely and sold responsibly is one of the priorities for the trading standards team at this time of year. It’s great to see that reported incidents of the misuse of fireworks in our communities are declining. This is due to the good work of the team in reinforcing the age restrictions on their supply.”
