With the government lockdown in place, shoppers are being asked to limit how often they go to the supermarket.

This means only going to stores for essentials.

As people make the natural choice and head for their closest Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Aldi, Lidl or Asda, this has led to long queues outside supermarkets across Swindon as store bosses try to limit the number people in the store at any one time.

I'm not keen on waiting in a line, so decided to try my luck elsewhere.

I headed to B&M Bargains on the Transfer Bridges roundabout at around 2pm on a Monday.

On my way there I had accepted that there probably wouldn’t be any fresh fruit or vegetables but I was hoping I would still be able to get what I needed, and a little extra.

I wasn’t disappointed.

The crowd management at B&M was better than I have experienced elsewhere since the new guidelines came into force.

Customers are asked to form a line along the right-hand side of the shop which curls around the car park. It wasn't much of a queue – there was about five of us spaced two metres apart.

There was a staff member at the door and every time a customer left, she let someone else so social distancing guidelines could be followed in the store.

One of the downsides to shopping at B&M is the stock placement. I felt a slight pressure to get out of the way of the door quickly, but this can be quite difficult when an item catches your eye right next to the door.

You have to make the split decision to leave it and keep walking or worry you’re holding everyone up when you stop to pick up a bottle of Pepsi Max.

When it comes to the rest of the store, yes it does still have (and sell) ‘non-essential’ items such as toys, board games and furniture, but I was able to get a decent shop done.

I went in with a shopping list. I needed some cereal, some pasta sauce, milk and a variety of other smaller items. I found most of it.

I was able to get fresh milk and cheese. There was cereal aplenty. The one downside was a lack of red pesto, but for a compromise green was available.

The one thing the shop was low on was flour, but that’s not just a problem B&M is having at the moment.

I finished my shop, paid for my items and left. It had been a comfortable, essential, shopping experience.