AN unhappy dad has hit out at Tesco for selling non-essential clothing while other important items are not available to families.

Samuel May was unable to buy school uniform and other clothes for his children while non-essential garments from the store’s Christmas range remain on sale.

He said: “It’s really frustrating.

“I totally understand that they have to shut some items away because of the lockdown, but they’ve not brought anything down that people actually need.”

The father of four visited Tesco Extra on Ocotal Way on November 7 to buy a packet of white polo shirts for his two boys aged six and four, as they were badly stained with school paint.

But after finding the whole upper floor with the clothing section closed off, Samuel became annoyed when he saw the supermarket's Christmas range had been bought down to the ground floor so customers could buy festive items.

“It was all Christmas stuff,” Samuel said. “Christmas jumpers, Christmas pyjamas. There was no essential stuff there.

“The boys needed the shirts for school on Monday.

“If Tesco is going to use that space and bring clothes down, then at least bring essential stuff down,.

Samuel suggested things like school uniform and shoes, underwear for children and warmer clothes for the elderly would have been more appropriate items to have on display during the lockdown.

“I know some people say it’s only four weeks, but if you have children, or are elderly or have a premature baby, you can’t wait for clothes if you need them,” Samuel said.

“Children don’t stop growing because of lockdown. Parents need to be able to get these things. They don’t need Christmas jumpers.”

He added: “It just seems like Tesco is trying to profit on it. It’s not fair that a lot of smaller clothing shops are shut but they can continue to sell their Christmas things.

“It’s frustrating that they don’t think things that are genuinely essential, are essential items. Christmas jumpers are a frivolous thing to put in their place.

“These supermarkets need to think sensibly about what people actually need, and not what they want to sell."

A Tesco spokesperson said: “In line with new government guidance in England which requires the closure of separate floors selling non-food items, we have closed the clothing and general merchandise departments in our stores that sell these products from a separate mezzanine level.”