Chippenham kebab van plan branded 'recipe for disaster’

Kebab Xpress filed a bid for a licence to park its van at the car park located outside the sports and football clubs in Chippenham, just off the Bristol Road, ahead of a planning committee meeting on August 27.

According to an agenda published ahead of the meeting, the catering van measures approximately 4.3–4.9 metres long, with the applicants seeking a licence to trade between 8am and 11pm seven days a week.

At the August 27 committee meeting, a wave of councillors raised objections to the plan, with one branding the proposal a “recipe for disaster”.

Cllr McDermid told the meeting she had heard a number of comments from members of the public, revolving around concerns about risks to healthy eating.

Other concerns the councillor raised included possible addition of litter, late night noise, possible anti-social behaviour in the area.

Cllr Puntis, meanwhile, said he had heard representations from people as well as the football and sports club.

He cited concerns over road safety, expressing concern about increased vehicles and conflict with pedestrians going to get a kebab.

The councillor added that while there is not generally issues with people exiting the club, there could be a risk of people congregating at the van after a match.

The car park where the kebab van has applied to be based. (Image: Google Street View)

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Cllr Puntis continued: “I think it’s just a recipe for disaster."

He continued: “At the moment everybody leaves and just goes, if you put something that’s going to attract them to hang around I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

He agreed with Cllr McDermid’s remarks about the risk of an increase in litter.

“I just don’t think it’s a good place to attract people to come to of an evening,” he said. “To me it doesn’t sit right.”

Cllr Puntis concluded: “To me there are in almost every single area, there is something that we should be making representations to about why this shouldn’t be supported.”

Cllr Owen echoed the comments made, adding that as a regular user of the car park he had noticed that it is often busy, and limiting parking spaces alongside other issues drove his decision to oppose the plans.

The committee agreed to object to Kebab Xpress’s proposals.