Tesco pleased with support for Stanley store proposals

Tesco has thanked the Stanley residents that have supported its plan to build a new store in the town centre.

More than 150 people visited an exhibition about the proposal, which Tesco say would create 250 jobs.

Councillor Katherine Dearden, one of the Durham county councillors for Stanley, saidshe supported Tesco’s proposal: “This level of investment and the new jobs will be great for Stanley.

“Stanley has been through a particularly tough time, but I would like to think that this could be the start of a revival of its fortunes. Everybody – its elected representatives and residents – are working hard to make this happen.”

Tesco received planning permission in 2011 to build a new store in the Clifford Road area. But, because discussions with tenants on the site took longer than anticipated and in light of changing customer shopping habits, it decided to submit a revised plan.

As well as food, the shop will sell Tesco’s clothing range F&F. There will be a bakery, pharmacy, cafe and a click and collect service for internet shoppers. It will be smaller than the store originally planned and will be built at ground level rather than on stilts, where some parking would have been provided underneath the building.

Tesco has also announced that a proportion of the staff who will be employed in the store will be local people who have been out of work for a long period.

They will be provided with support - for example, training for a job interview - to be able to compete for one of the jobs, which will be a mixture of full and part-time.

Similar employment programmes have been successfully implemented in stores Tesco has opened in Bishop Auckland, Gateshead and Sunderland.

Tesco is the UK’s largest retailer and one of the world’s leading international retailers. Tesco has around 6,000 stores worldwide, employing over 500,000 people in the 12 countries in which we operate. Our core purpose is to make what matters better, together.

Tesco is now analysing residents’ comments about its proposal and they will help shape the planning application which will be submitted to Durham County Council in the near future.