Hearing will decide alcohol licence for new Lidl in Wolverhampton
A hearing will decide whether a new supermarket in Wolverhampton will be given an alcohol licence.
Supermarket chain Lidl is opening a new store on the site of the former Gills sausage factory and abattoir in Parkfield Road, Wolverhampton.
An application for a licence to sell alcohol between 7am and 11pm from the new supermarket will be decided by the council’s licensing committee on January 8 over public health and police concerns.
The force and the council said they were looking to reach an agreement with Lidl over the new licence “to ensure the licensing objectives [were] upheld and [the licence would not] have a negative impact on the wider community.”
Licensing officers at City of Wolverhampton Council had said Lidl’s application contained “insufficient information” to address their concerns.
Public health officials said they wanted to ensure cans of super-strength alcohol were not sold individually and could only be bought in packs of four – given Wolverhampton had one of the highest alcohol-specific mortality rates in the country.
City of Wolverhampton Council gave permission to Lidl to build a new store and 17 new homes on the site of the former abattoir in October.
The local authority approved plans to demolish the former meat wholesaler’s factory on the edge of Birmingham New Road and Parkfield Road last month.
The demolition will make way for the supermarket and a 110-space car park.
Plans for a mix of up to 17 one-to-four-bed homes were also included in the planning application submitted by Lidl.
The supermarket would also bring 40 new jobs.
The site was previously occupied by FA Gills as an abattoir and sausage factory but the business was sold in 2023 and operations ceased.
A statement included with Lidl’s planning application said: “The development will bring a vacant parcel of brownfield land into active use, remediate the site, provide local job opportunities, affordable housing and bring inward investment to the area.
“The new foodstore will provide a fit for purpose facility for Lidl with a contemporary, well-designed approach which is environmentally sound.
“The provision of up to 17 dwellings will provide affordable and family housing in a residential area and sustainable location.”
