A town’s fifth Co-op store will open next year on a new estate where several residents have now moved in.

The supermarket chain will be located at the Crown Hill View development in Kennington, known locally as Large Burton.

The shop, which will create 15 jobs, is set to be built on the ground floor of a new block of flats close to an access point off Willesborough Road.

The branch will be erected opposite a community centre just off the A2070 and housebuilder Redrow has now confirmed the store is set open early next year.

The Co-op currently operates four other stores in Ashford with units in Faversham Road, Kennington, Godinton Park, Brookfield Court, and Hunter Avenue in Willesborough.

The announcement comes as Redrow continues to work on the first phase of Crown Hill View which will see 288 three and four-bedroom homes built, all costing at least £405,000 to purchase.

A further 437 are yet to be built, but outline consent has been secured with full plans expected soon for the project which will eventually see 725 properties constructed.

The scheme is also set to feature a new venue for Ashford Town Bowls Club, a footbridge over the railway line, 7.4 acres of new wetlands, and a two-form entry primary school called Conningbrook CofE Primary.

A section 106 agreement – a developer contribution designed to offset the impact of housebuilding – means the land for the school will be handed over to Kent County Council before 180 homes have been sold.

The project – which is in ABC's Local Plan – was met with more than 1,000 objections before it was given the green light by the authority.

Despite the fears, Redrow has now confirmed 17 people have moved into Crown Hill View.

News of The Co-op’s imminent arrival comes just months after plans for the second phase of the Conningbrook Lakes housing development directly next to Crown Hill View were approved by Ashford Borough Council (ABC).

Three-hundred homes have already been built in the area, and a further 170 were green-lit for land bordering the Julie Rose Stadium in October.