Farm shop owner says roadworks 'killed' footfall

The joint owner of a farm shop in Derbyshire says the delayed finish of roadworks have had a "devastating" impact on his business.

Nigel Harding, who co-owns the Newlands Farm Shop and Tea Room, in Sutton Lane, Hilton, with his wife, said roadworks in the area had "absolutely killed" footfall.

Harding said road closures - put in place by Severn Trent Water on Sutton Lane on 29 December - alongside flooding in Breach Lane had created a four-mile (6.4km) detour for customers aiming to visit the shop.

A spokesperson for Severn Trent apologised for the disruption caused by the works to replace water pipes and said it discovered complexities that "delayed work slightly".

On Thursday the company said work on Sutton Lane was complete and it would reopen the road in the next few days.

Harding told the BBC he and his wife opened the farm shop four years ago to diversify the farming business, and were "getting going nicely" before the roadworks began.

"I'm guessing on turnover, we're down a good 50%. So it's cost me thousands," he said.

Harding said he was told roadworks would be complete by 16 January but this was not the case.

"It's devastating for us really," he said. "We've built this up as a family business, my staff are brilliant, they're having to go another four miles all the way around just to get to us.

"My regular customers have been brilliant, they've said 'we won't go anywhere else and we'll always make sure we try and get here' but inevitably, we have lost a lot of custom through this.

"And what's worrying us now is getting that customer base back."

A Severn Trent spokesperson said: "We're sorry for the disruption caused by a road closure on Sutton Lane. We have been working on a £5m project to replace 10km of water pipes, and the closure means our teams and local community remain safe.

"When we started the work on Sutton Lane, we discovered complexities that meant we had to change our designs, and this delayed our work slightly, but the work is now complete. We're now putting the road back to normal before opening it again in the next few days.

"This project forms part of a wider £415m investment right across our region, where we're replacing over 870 miles of pipes to reduce leaks and provide a reliable supply for customers."

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