Ocado depot plan in London derailed by locals’ intervention

Ocado has lost the right to open a new depot in north London after the local council ruled that a planning application was misleading.

The news emerged after Labour councillors in the area welcomed the move by the authorities in Islington.

The decision could be a major setback for Ocado’s ambitions to have depots closer to shoppers to cut delivery times. Other supermarkets, such as Tesco, have also begun building urban warehouses to dispatch online orders from.

The council has withdrawn the rights to open the distribution centre next to a primary school and nursery after grassroots campaigners, many of whom are parents and call themselves “Nocado”, challenged the planning application in April.

The authorities concluded that Ocado’s landlords, Telereal Trillium, provided “false and misleading evidence” and “withheld material information” to allow it to operate. 

Ocado said it was disappointed by the council’s decision and it was considering all its options with the landlords.