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Concerns as town's 11th phone repair shop set to open

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Another day, another phone shop in Ipswich.

The big picture: Fresh off July's grand opening of iCrack, the town's tenth phone repair shop, the former Hotter Comfort Concept store on Tavern Street is set to become the town's eleventh.

iRepair and iVape is set to be the town's twelth phone repair store
iRepair and the adjoining iVape will become the town's eleventh mobile phone repair shopWill Hamer

Why it matters: Many residents and business owners are concerned that the prevelance of phone repair shops is exacerbating the town centre's challenges and negatively impacting other businesses.

What they're saying: Speaking to Ipswich.co.uk, Will Hamer, who runs the brilliant Threads for All shop on the Walk in Ipswich, raised his frustrations:

"These guys pop up everywhere and seem to some how succeed in a clearly saturated market.

"It devalues the town, nobody’s going to come and visit Ipswich to see its many phone shops, we need unique stores that are going to bring people in."

And he's not alone: I can say from firsthand conversations I've had with residents, and following reader feedback from a previous story on the number of phone shops in the town, that Will's frustrations are shared by many others.

The other side: It's another disused store that is now occupied, and while the abundance of phone shops may seem excessive to some, it could indicate a thriving, albeit very competitive, market.

Zooming out: According to Ibis, the UK phone repair market will be worth an estimated £706m in 2024, a 9.9% increase from 2023. There are 616 businesses in the UK employing over 3,300 people.

By the numbers:

  • Ipswich accounts for 0.2% of the UK's population but 1.8% of the UK's phone shops.

  • If Ipswich accounts for 0.2% of the UK phone repair market, it is worth an estimated £1,412,000 – £128.4k per shop.

The bottom line: iRepair will become the town's eleventh phone repair shop, but will it be it's last? Only time will tell.

Ipswich hospital trust netted millions in parking profits before increasing fees for staff, patients and visitors

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The East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust (ESNEFT), which runs Ipswich and Colchester hospitals, collected £3.5 million in parking charges in 2023-24, with more than half a million pounds coming from staff just months before increasing their parking fees by up to 226%.

Why it matters: The figures come two months after the hospital trust controversially implemented significant parking fee increases at both Ipswich Hospital and Colchester Hospital, affecting thousands of staff, patients and visitors.

  • Lowly-paid Band 2 staff saw increases of up to 226%

  • While higher-paid consultants saw their prices increase by just 2.9%

By the numbers: The trust generated a total of £3.5m parking revenue in 2023-24:

  • £2.9m from patients and visitors

  • £565,000 from staff parking

  • They spent £730,000 running the parking services, netting £2.7m profit

Visitor car park fees sign at Ipswich Hospital
Car parking tariff at Ipswich HospitalOliver Rouane-WilliamsIpswich.co.uk

What they're saying: GMB Union said: "Health workers are on their knees – they need help and support. Charging them to park is kicking them while they are down," says Rachel Harrison, GMB national secretary."

Patricia Marquis, Royal College of Nurses executive director for England, says nursing staff "shouldn't be forced to spend a significant portion of their wages just to park at work,"

The other side: NHS England says revenue from parking is reinvested into trust services. A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson says while trusts are responsible for their own parking charges, "any charges must be reasonable and in line with the local area."

The bottom line: While ESNEFT maintains parking charges help fund hospital improvements and promote alternative transport options, the increases have sparked criticism from unions and come during an ongoing cost-of-living crisis affecting many families.

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