SUPERMARKET firm Waitrose’s is re-thinking proposals for deliveries to its Wellington store which could cause sleepless nights for people who live nearby.

Wellington Town Council recommended the plans for up to three night-time deliveries should be refused by the Deane council because of the ‘unacceptable nuisance’ local residents would suffer.

And town Councillor John Thorne called on Waitrose to withdraw the planning application and talk to councillors about possible alternative ways to help the supermarket.

Now, Waitrose has dropped proposals for any-time night deliveries and has applied instead for permission for lorries to arrive up to 11 pm nightly.

Councillor Thorne said: “In essence, Waitrose was saying that the future sustainable economic growth of Wellington depended on their customers being able to buy jam doughnuts and croissants at 8 o’clock in the morning.

“This was a quite ridiculous argument, and was insulting to the council and to the town and the people who live here.

“They even quoted a High Court case in London where a judge ruled that people living alongside a busy city centre road already suffered high noise levels and therefore would not be further disturbed by allowing lorries to deliver to a supermarket next door.

“Again, this was a nonsensical argument to put forward in Wellington when they were talking here about people living in Orchard Court, Acre Cottages, and Buckwell - hardly comparable to the centre of Westminster, in London.”

Waitrose had wanted the all-night deliveries in order to help staff to stock the shelves with fresh produce before its 8 am opening time.

The company told the Deane council it wanted to be a ‘good neighbour’ and so for many years it had imposed a delivery management plan setting out ‘quiet delivery procedures’ to avoid disturbing local residents.

However, Councillor Thorne said he saw and heard several breaches of the ‘quiet plan’ when he visited Orchard Court shortly before 7 am on a Thursday morning to witness a delivery for himself.

Councillor Thorne said: “Waitrose gave the council a photograph showing a lorry which had reversed inside the building before unloading, so I was surprised to see that the lorry actually stopped well short of the building, meaning it was not screened from the Orchard Court bungalows.

“There was also quite a racket being made by the unloading of the lorry and movement of metal cages which they use to carry stock in and out, which again is not supposed to happen.

“Some of the noise of the lorry’s engine and staff talking was partially masked by background noise in the environment, such as traffic and crows cawing.

“But when I went back again at 2.40 am the following morning, there was hardly any background noise and it was immediately apparent that a delivery at such a peaceful time would be enormously more disturbing.

“Bear in mind this is the winter and residents have their windows shut, so in the summer when windows are likely to be open in warm weather, I can easily see how people would be woken up several times a night.”

Councillor Thorne said he fully supported Waitrose as an asset for the town and recognised its contribution to the local community and that it had helped to attract other quality shops to Wellington.

But he said the company took on the store in the first place with the knowledge that delivery times were restricted, and he felt it should be experienced enough to manage the situation without causing distress for neighbours.

He was also surprised to learn from Orchard Court residents who have recently been keeping a diary, that Waitrose already had a number of smaller vehicles making deliveries at all times of the night despite a ban on such activities.

“This appears to be a complete breach of the original planning consent for the supermarket and I have raised the issue with the Deane council’s enforcement officer because we need answers before the new planning application is considered,” said Councillor Thorne.