The University of Cambridge welcomes the recent consultation on Cambridge City and South Cambridgeshire Council's informal planning policy guidance on food store provision in North West Cambridge. The outcome of this process should establish clear guidance for the future on this particular issue.

The University is supportive of Option Two - to establish two supermarkets of 2,000m2 net floorspace, one on the University site and one on the NIAB site. It believes that this option is the best one for both the University's development in the North West of Cambridge and the wider community in the rest of the city.

The University supports this option because it strongly believes that only a store of this size would provide a wide enough range of goods to discourage residents and employees from leaving the site to shop. This is an important measure to minimise the traffic generated by cars making unnecessary journeys in this part of Cambridge.

As a responsible land owner with a commitment to a long term, sustainable future for this area, the University is also keen to minimise unnecessary traffic on the site where possible. Therefore it does not favour a bigger supermarket on its site which may encourage larger numbers non-residents from elsewhere in Cambridge to drive to North West Cambridge to shop.

The University has also urged the councils to ensure that their preferred phasing for any future development will enable it to develop its North West Cambridge site in an environmentally and economically sustainable manner. In order to enhance community cohesion in the new development it is the University's aspiration to creative a vibrant local centre, which includes food store provision as part of the initial phase of development. Read the full response here.