A city councillor has vowed to fight on to protect residents from more sleepless nights caused by 'deafening noise' with sound proofing a possibility as a supermarket undergoes a major makeover.

The major redevelopment of Sainsbury’s Blackpole in Windermere Drive, Warndon, Worcester is well underway after residents complained of sleepless nights caused by the work, including loud drilling sounds.

The shopping area has been split into a temporary store open to the public and a closed area for building work.

Cllr Jill Desayrah said both herself and Cllr Ed Kimberley were contacted by sleep- deprived residents in July when the car park was resurfaced.

CONCERNS: Cllr Jill Desayrah has responded to the concerns of residents living near Sainsbury's (Image: NQ)

She said: "No prior warning by Sainsbury’s was given that there would be several nights of tarmacking to endure, with deafening machinery running into the early hours."

The councillors contacted Worcestershire Regulatory Services, (WRS), who met with Sainsbury’s store and project management to agree noise reduction measures going forward.

Cllr Desayrah added: "Sainsbury’s also agreed to communicate with residents likely to be affected, providing a contact phone number and provided assurances that disturbances would be minimised.

"However things didn’t go entirely to plan. The letters didn’t go out before the work started and the contact details provided were not easy to follow. The new generator that was supposed to power the site failed and a very noisy temporary one was the only option available. This has mainly affected residents living in Joiners Close.

"Unavoidably, it has been running 24/7 for weeks and will continue to do so until the new generator replaces it - planned for Tuesday morning (August 27)."

Building work has resulted in complaints from residents living in Quenington Close.

Meanwhile, Worcestershire Regulatory Services (WRS) challenged Sainsbury’s contractors on their working practices, agreeing on steps to mitigate the disturbance.

The building and shopping areas will be swapped and residents living in and around Joiners Close are most likely to be affected by the tile lifting operation planned during the first week of that phase.

"Having learned from the terrible experience of residents living in Quenington, who endured several sleepless nights when the floor was lifted close to them, WRS and Cllr Desayrah met with Sainsbury’s again to discuss further noise mitigation. The work will be closely monitored and more sound proofing will be applied to the exterior walls, if required," she said.

WRS has legal powers to intervene if noise levels rise to unacceptable levels at any time during this redevelopment but they must receive reports from the public before they can act and can be emailed at enquiries@worcsregservices.gov.uk.

Cllr Jill Desayrah said: “Many residents I have spoken to about this work understand that some disruption is to be expected. They are looking forward to a smart, refurbished shop. Sainsbury’s store and project management teams have stated that they are keen to minimise any disruption. I believe that they are acting in good faith, and I hope our reports from the first phase of the work mean improvements will be made going forward."

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A Sainsbury’s spokesperson said: “We are transforming our Blackpole supermarket for our customers and we are sorry for the disruption these works may have caused to any of our neighbours. 

“We are in close and regular contact with Councillor Desayrah and the local Environmental Health Officer to agree more measures we can put in place to minimise any noise as the project progresses and we would like to thank them for supporting us with these.”