'It's a phenomenal year for patio furniture sales'

Kevin Turley says Lakeside Plant Centre had to order a second shipment of patio furniture for the first time ever

Businesses say the hot weather is attracting more customers - with shops selling garden furniture and barbecue food benefitting in particular.

Temperatures are set to soar close to 30C (86F) this week in Shropshire, with the Met Office poised to declare the first heatwave of 2025.

The nights will also be much warmer from Thursday, with many areas seeing temperatures in the high teens.

Kevin Turley, who works at Lakeside Plant Centre in Telford, said it had been a "phenomenal" year for patio furniture sales.

"For the first time ever, we've got two [shipping] containers of patio furniture in our 20 years of being here," he added.

"Parasols are a big thing too," Mr Turley said, adding the weather was "such a great barometer" for the garden industry.

"The more sun we get, the more people shop and it helps keep the industry buoyant."

Mr Turley says the business had to order a second shipping container of patio furniture to keep up with demand

Next door, at Greenfields Farm Shop, the coolers are on full blast to keep the cheese and meat cold.

"Sales have gone up in potato salads, coleslaws and quiches," manager Laura Griffin said.

Burgers, sausages, and kebabs are also flying off the shelves in the hot weather, with staff expecting sales to increase "even more so" over the weekend.

Ms Griffin added new housing developments nearby meant this had been her busiest year yet.

Laura Griffin says the farm shop is seeing a rise in sales of deli food including coleslaw and potato salads

Meanwhile in Wellington, bowls players Richard Suggett and Mark Doodson were making the most of the sunshine.

But as the bowling greens do not offer much shade, they said they were taking extra steps to stay cool.

"It's best to keep water on the side," Mr Suggett said, pointing to his "tank full of water".

"You've got to keep yourself hydrated, otherwise you start getting dizzy."

Richard Suggett says he is making sure to take lots of water when he plays bowls

Bowls is "very, very popular" at this time of year, said Mr Doodson.

"Shropshire is a bit of a stronghold in the bowls community," he added, noting their "dedicated grounds team" spent a lot of the summer tending to the grass and making sure the sprinklers were running.

Mark Doodson is on the committee of Bowring Bowls Club in Wellington

Opposite the bowling green, Bowring Park Cafe does a booming trade in cold drinks and ice creams.

"This weather is absolutely gorgeous, the park's busy, people are coming to walk their dogs, bringing their kids," said owner Donna Miles.

She added frappuccinos, milkshakes, and iced coffees were particularly popular.

Donna Miles says if the temperature gets higher than 30C, the number of customers tends to decline

Ms Miles noted that when the weather was hotter than 30C, business quietened down a bit.

On those days, "it gets really busy in the morning, but then no-one is out in the afternoon", she said.

"People want to make the most of it and sit outside - we've got a lovely park here in Wellington."