15th March 2007
TESCO: Proposed development on Savile Street
Reply to article in Burngreave Messenger 19/02/07
I am delighted you have been covering our consultation on plans for a new Tesco store on the Hartwell’s site in Savile Street. As we have emphasised, we do want feedback and our proposals are not set in stone. We are still working towards a planning application and the Council will have the final say on what goes ahead – but your views will help us design and deliver a development that can really contribute to the future of Burngreave.
Your article did however raise a number of queries and I would welcome the opportunity to reply and explain these points in greater detail.
Landscaping
Although the detail of our plans is not yet confirmed, we are committed to improving the local landscape and environment. Some of you have expressed an interest in becoming involved with the design and maintenance of our proposed public plaza and public seating has been asked for.
Likewise, we are happy to look at ways of keeping the plaque commemorating the visit of the Bulgarian trade unionist delegation that was mentioned in your article. It doesn’t have to go. If enough people feel it is an important feature in Burngreave, it could be included on our list of considerations.
Office accommodation
Sheffield City Council has asked for offices to be included on the site. These will contribute to the provision of office space across the city and will attract new investment into Burngreave as well as providing local businesses with opportunities for modern accommodation.
The provision of subsidised office space for local community groups has not yet been decided as our application is only for outline planning at this stage. However as part of our commitment to Burngreave, we want to work with the local community to make sure our plans contribute to the long-term future of the area. We are already talking to different groups in the community. The next stage will be to set up a regeneration partnership and to involve local businesses so that we can look into appropriate ways of supporting them.
Jobs and training
Your article raised the question of whether or not Burngreave will see the main benefits of new jobs created by the new Tesco store. In answer, Tesco has a policy of local recruitment in all its stores. It works well in several ways. Our staff don’t have so far to travel; our customers see faces they recognise when they shop in-store; and with more people working locally, there’s likely to be more business for other shops and services.
Recruiting locally
When we open a new store, we do need to bring in experienced staff who know how we run our stores and who can show newcomers to the company how we work. The majority though are recruited locally wherever possible.
The Tesco Job Guarantee
In Burngreave we recognise that there are significant numbers of people who would benefit from our Job Guarantee scheme. This scheme opens up opportunities to people who have no retail experience, who perhaps have not worked for a long time or even those who have never worked. Perhaps they have difficulties reading, writing or speaking English or working as a team – it doesn’t matter – our training scheme is designed to offer you a job on the basis that you are genuinely keen to work with us. If you are, you are offered a job at the outset – provided you complete our recommended training scheme which will help you learn the skills you need to start work at Tesco.
It’s quite a different approach but we know it works because we’ve been able to employ over 2,200 people across the country through schemes like this. And it’s been a huge help to getting many of them on paths to longer term careers in retail management.
What about people with existing retail skills?
But we are not ruling out people who already have retail skills. If you do, we want to hear from you too. We need different types of skills in every store. If you live locally, so much the better – we want to encourage people to live and work closer to home – its better for the environment, the community and everyone’s quality of life.
Tesco is committed to training, to jobs and to local recruitment As a company Tesco is committed to lifelong learning and career progression. Everyone who works with us is given the opportunity to learn new and different skills and to develop their careers. We have people who started work with through our job guarantee scheme and have gone on to become supervisors and take up other managerial roles. And we have staff who were already skilled in retail when they joined but who have moved up the company through our in-house training. If you are keen, our commitment to training and career development is 100 percent.
And yes, for Burngreave, all this is dependent on planning permission for the development being granted – and the Council have the final say. But what we can be sure of is that if the store is given the go ahead, we’ll be looking to you to apply for most of the jobs.
Size of store
With regard to the size of store and range of facilities, our plans have been designed to boost and support the Spital Hill District Centre.
The Tesco Extra foodstore will have a net retail area of 7,537 sqm so it can stock the range and choice of goods needed to meet demand and bring shoppers back to Spital Hill. We’ve also included a customer café and by popular request, an ATM cash point.
Plans include 431 sqm neighbourhood retail units and 3,656 lettable office space – bringing more investment, business and jobs into the area.
The whole development will be served by an 871 space car park – providing enough spaces for people using the shops and offices as well as shoppers linking trips to other shops in Spital Hill. Other facilities include a petrol filling station, car wash and recycling unit.
The effect of the development on local businesses
As a company we work with local businesses in towns and cities across the country to help as many people as possible benefit from our stores.
Because we are a popular supermarket, we attract people into the area – and that means more potential business for other local traders. The vast majority of people we’ve been talking to in Burngreave tell us they would love to have a new supermarket in Spital Hill. This in itself will mean more people choosing to shop locally. Then there are those living in the North and East of Sheffield – the type of store we’re proposing could encourage them to shop here too.
Our aim is to support and complement local businesses. In Burngreave, there is large number of specialist shops who offer completely different products and services to Tesco. Our store won’t compete with them, it will help to boost business.
An important part of our plans is the proposed pedestrian linkage with Spital Hill. This is to make it as easy as possible for shoppers to park at Tesco and walk into the District Centre. We’re looking at different ways to do this and a signalised pedestrian crossing is one option. Another way to make pedestrian access even safer would be to close Carlisle Street. This is just an idea at the moment and there have been some concerns, but it would help make the store part of the whole community.
The planning process
However all this is, as you point out, up to the Council to decide. Our application, which was due to be submitted in early March, is now being put back to April or May, allowing us time to complete our traffic analysis. It also means there’s now extra time for you to respond. Leaflets have been delivered house to house so if you haven’t already commented – do send us your views.
Once the application is with the Council, they will look carefully at our proposals and take the views of the local community into account. The response from our presentations to the Burngreave Area Panel, the Business Forum and the Council’s Design Review Panel will form part of our report on the consultation so far and this will be included with the planning application. We’ll be including feedback from our exhibition and the leaflet drop too – so thank you to everyone who has filled in comment cards.
It is a long process and there is lots to do, but at each stage we want to make sure we keep you up-to-date with what is happening. As well as articles in the Messenger and other local papers, we’ll soon be launching a website with all sorts of information on the plans and stories on how our regeneration partnerships have worked in other cities too.
In the meantime, if you would like to contact us, please call on: 0800 216 254
Or email:
Karen West: km.west@btinternet.com <km.west@btinternet.com>
Max Curtis: max.curtis@uk.tesco.com <max.curtis@uk.tesco.com>
Thank you.
Max Curtis, Tesco