ST DAVID’S Hospice Care reopened a temporary charity shop this week seven months after a fire ripped through their Newbridge High Street.

A large blaze destroyed St David’s Hospice Care charity shop and Station Coffee Shop on the high street in Newbridge in February this year.

36 firefighters from Aberbargoed, Risca, New Inn, Abertillery, Caerphilly and Maindee tackled the fire, which the fire service said was accidental.

On Tuesday, September 15, St David’s Hospice Care opened a new temporary site for their Newbridge charity shop in Llanover building in Victoria Terrace.

Although it is temporary, the shop could be needed for as long as two years while the old shop is rebuilt.

Jenny Channing, head of retail at the charity, said: “The opening went very, very well.

“The support from the Newbridge community has been fantastic.

“All the time we have been closed people have been on and on and us asking when we will reopen.

“So when we managed to find a property everybody was very supportive.”

Ms Channing said the community have been making lots of donations and since opening the shop has been very busy.

She added: “All the volunteers who used to work in the shop have come back and we have the same manager and assistant manager.

“All in all we are delighted with it.”

The only thing the new temporary shop cannot do is sell furniture.

It is yet unknown when the old site on the high street will be restored but work has not yet started.

Royston Lewis, who ran Station Cafe, had to move full time to his other business, Victoria’s Cafe in Victoria Terrace, with the staff sharing the available hours.

The cafe and the charity shop are back together again at Victoria Terrace following the fire.