Major supermarket Ocado reveals plans to create over 400 jobs next to new huge 3,000-home estate

A major supermarket is planning to create more than 400 jobs as part of a vast Nottinghamshire development that includes 3,000 new homes. Ocado has asked Rushcliffe Borough Council for permission to turn one of the new business units at the sprawling Fairham development, which is positioned between Clifton and Gotham, into an important distribution centre that will serve customers.

A planning document, which was submitted to Rushcliffe's planning department, said: "Ocado have identified this area of Nottingham as a key area where the demand for goods is high, yet the existing availability of distribution hubs is low, which ultimately affects the service Ocado are able to provide to the customer and results in long wait times for groceries.

"The objective of Ocado is to occupy this unit, and serve the wider Nottingham area, providing an essential service for residents." The facility, if given permission to set up, would operate 24/7, according to planning documents.

To do this it would employ 422 people, with the majority of these workers being van drivers. There would also be 42 marshals, 17 office staff and five maintenance staff. Ocado said its distribution centres had become even more since the coronavirus pandemic, as the pandemic had increased the number of people who shop online.

Ocado has asked the council for permission to change the warehouse's parking spaces, to install new security fencing and gates, CCTV, and fit new equipment. The planning application will be considered and decided on by Rushcliffe Borough Council.

The new facility would be located within the western area of the wider Fairham development, where a number of different housebuilders are constructing thousands of new properties. When it is complete there will be up to 3,000 homes, a huge business park, community buildings, leisure venues, schools, and traveller pitches.

There are also plans for the Nottingham Express Transit tram network to be extended so it can serve the area. House building started at Fairham in early 2024, with builders submitting plans for their own sections of the site throughout the year.