At last! Retail giant begins work on long-awaited Penwortham supermarket

Tesco, which took over the former Government office site in Cop Lane from fellow retail giants Sainsbury’s in 2013, has started constructing their 24-hour store, which will also include a petrol station.

But the on-off project, which was dramatically declared to be back on last October, is not now expected to hit its target for a Christmas opening due to delays caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The supermarket saga has divided the town since 2010 when Sainsbury’s bought the five-acre site which had previously housed offices of the Department of Work and Pensions and HMRC.

After three years Sainsbury’s decided not to build there and sold it on to Tesco who put in plans for a slightly smaller store.

But then they pulled out in May 2018 and looked set to sell off the land, only to do a U-turn last autumn by announcing the supermarket plan was back on the drawing board.

The retailer had hoped to start work months ago, with an opening date set initially for October. But minor planning issues, coupled with the coronavirus lockdown, put the project on hold.

The store will be built at the south end of the site backing onto Penwortham Girls High School, with the petrol station adjacent to Liverpool Road.