ELDERLY residents are being forced to climb stairs to access a busy pharmacy as the lift has been out of action for weeks.

The pharmacy at Boots' New Bond Street store in Weymouth town centre is on the first floor.

The lift has not been working for more than a month so customers have to climb the 22-step staircase.

This is a concern for elderly and disabled residents including Barry Sampson, 88.

Mr Sampson said: “I can get up and down the stairs with a bit of effort, but I can imagine that there are a lot of people in the same position that struggle or have to send a family member to collect their prescriptions.

“For many weeks, the lift has not been working, a situation that has created inconvenience for numerous people, mainly elderly customers needing to renew their monthly repeat medication and prescriptions.

He went on to say that ‘this is the second occasion the lift has been out of order for a long time.’

Boots has apologised and said it hopes to repair the lift ‘within the next week.’

The company is also encouraging people to make the most of their online delivery service at this time.

A spokesperson for Boots said: “The lift at our Weymouth store is currently out of order and we hope to repair it within the next week, once we have received an order we have placed for the replacement parts.

“We apologise for the inconvenience this has caused our customers while we’re highlighting our home delivery service for repeat prescriptions.”

The pharmacy moved into its New Bond Street premises back in 2022 which was formerly the New Look store.

Boots was formerly located in St Thomas Street prior to this with the pharmacy on the ground floor.

The Boots pharmacy on Portland also closed its doors for the final time much to the community's sadness earlier this year.

The chain also has a pharmacy on Portland Road in Wyke Regis.