KENDAL people are being given a chance to have their say on plans for a Sainsbury's store which would create up to 350 jobs in the town.

Developer Morbaine has submitted a planning application for the Shap Road store to South Lakeland District Council (SLDC) and will consult with Kendal residents on the plans at an information event on Sunday, March 9, from 2pm to 7pm.

Morbaine is proposing to develop the Kendal Rugby Club site as a foodstore with 50,000 sq ft of sales space. The plans also include car parking and a customer café, as well as improved site access.

It is understood the application will be considered at a meeting of SLDC's planning committee later this month.

Andrew Sanderson, regional development manager for Sainsbury's, said: "The opportunity to work with Morbaine to create a Sainsbury's foodstore in Kendal is an exciting one for us. This store would bring more choice to the town while creating up to 350 jobs for local people.

Kendal Rugby Club has already been granted planning permission to relocate to a new purpose-built facility at Oxenholme Road, but cannot move until an application to redevelop the Shap Road site has been approved by the Council.

"Although the planning application has been submitted, we'd still like to know what people living in the area think about the plans," said Mr Sanderson. "I'd encourage anyone with an interest in this scheme to come and see us on the 9th, where members of the project team will be available to answer any questions people might have about the proposals."

Alex Brodie, director at Morbaine, said: "This is a really interesting project for Morbaine and we're thrilled to be partnering with Sainsbury's in helping to bring a foodstore to Kendal. We're looking forward to hearing what people from the local community make of the plans for the store."