Lidl is the supermarket in talks for the empty former Co-op site in Wickford town centre, Basildon Council minutes say. A supermarket only, with no flats.

Lidl is the supermarket chain in talks to open on the former Co-op site in Wickford town centre. The site has been empty for years, after earlier deals with Morrisons and Asda came to nothing.

The news is in the draft minutes of Basildon Council’s Cabinet meeting on 24 September. They were published this week in the papers for the next Cabinet meeting, on 15 October.

What the minutes say

The update came during the Cabinet member for regeneration’s report on the council’s regeneration priorities. The draft minutes record that Cabinet was told:

  • “Lidl UK is now the interested supermarket operator for the former Wickford Co-op site”
  • negotiations are “nearing completion”
  • pre-planning advice has been submitted
  • the proposal is “for a supermarket only”
  • council land and car park arrangements are being negotiated to support it

The minutes do not give a timetable, the size of the store or a jobs figure. No planning application has been made yet. Pre-application advice is normally confidential, so the plans themselves are not public.

The minutes are a draft until Cabinet approves them on 15 October.

Why it matters in Wickford

The town has been waiting a long time for a second big supermarket.

  • Morrisons pulled out. Morrisons withdrew from a scheme to redevelop the site, which also included a seven-storey block of flats and an underground car park, according to Rayleigh and Wickford MP Mark Francois.
  • The MP wrote to every chain. In April 2024 he wrote to the chief executives of the major supermarkets, except Aldi and the Co-op, asking whether they would take the site on. “This whole saga” had “rumbled on for far too long”, he said.
  • Asda talks followed. Later that month the site’s developer, Herriot, told him it was in advanced talks with Asda. It planned a revised £30 million scheme with a three-storey block of flats, the MP said. It hoped to open in 2025. That did not happen.

The Lidl proposal is different in one important way. According to the minutes, it is a supermarket only, with no flats.

Wickford already has an Aldi, which was rebuilt and expanded, the MP’s 2024 statement notes.

What it means for you

  • Nothing is approved yet. Lidl will need planning permission. When an application is made, it will appear on the council’s planning register, and neighbours will be able to comment. We list new applications every week in Basildon planning this week.
  • Parking may change. The minutes say the council’s own land and car park are part of the talks. How that affects town centre parking has not been set out. Current car parks and charges are on our parking in Basildon page.
  • Cabinet meets again on Thursday 15 October at 7pm at the Basildon Centre. The meeting is streamed on YouTube. Wickford regeneration is not a separate item on the agenda, but Cabinet members give verbal updates.

We will add any statement Lidl or the council publishes, and we will report the planning application when it is made.

Other regeneration news from the same meeting is in our Basildon regeneration update.