With Sidmouth striving to maintain its status as a plastic-free town, the recent reversion from paper bags to plastic packaging for prescriptions at Boots Pharmacy in the town is causing a stir with local customers.

Sidmouth Nub News contacted Boots Pharmacy on Woolbrook Road and asked them about the recent change of packaging.

A spokesperson for the store said: "Yes, we've had lots of people expressing their concerns over this.

"It's actually completely out of our hands, as Boots recently changed the way it dispenses its prescriptions. It's all done by a robot at a main depot in Preston and then they deliver it – we are only responsible for sending off the prescriptions now and not packaging them.

"Boots are aware that many people are unhappy with the use of plastic packaging and are working hard to address the issue."

Cllr Denise Bickley, who runs the Sidmouth Plastic Warriors group, said: "It's a massive step back.

"As part of our plastic-free campaign, we are really trying to get the big-name shops on the high street to start doing their bit.

"I wasn't aware of this at the Boots in Sidmouth, however I know that as a company their plastic use is a big problem nationally – they wrap everything in plastic, even hair brushes!

"Boots and Co-op in Sidmouth are both responsible for a shocking amount of unnecessary plastic wrapping on their products.

"They are the worst culprits as they operate on such a large scale.

"The 'meal deals' for example, on offer in both stores, encourage customers to buy plastic bottles of drink.

"It's completely against what we're trying to achieve here in Sidmouth, as a plastic-free community"

If you would like to know more about the work that Sidmouth Plastic Warriors does and how you can get involved, click the red button below.