A TESCO store in Bradford is set to open an 'Urban Fulfilment Centre' next week to cater for more online orders, as there has been an increase of online shopping during the pandemic.

The new centre will open at the Valley Road store on Canal Road, as confirmed by Tesco PLC's Q3 and Christmas Trading Statement which was published on their website on Thursday, January 13. However, an official date has not yet been confirmed.

A Tesco spokesperson said: “It is our ambition to open a number of urban fulfilment centres over the next few years, and we are excited one of these centres will open in Bradford.

"Urban fulfilment centres will use excess space in our large stores to fulfil online orders using automated technology in an area entirely separate to the customer store, making it more convenient for our customers. It will also grow our online capacity as well as giving our customers more home delivery slots.”

A planning application was submitted to Bradford Council last year to create the facility which will cater for 29 "Dot Com vans", but will also lead to the loss of 44 car parking spaces.

Planning officers said; "It is considered that, particularly in recent years, shopping habits have changed considerably, with less people visiting the shops in person and more people doing their shopping online.

"The location of the spaces to be lost, are the hardest to reach in the site, located well away from the main entrance and on the car park's edge.

"The trend in online retail is one that does appear to be continuing, and the number of deliveries each van will make, it is assumed, will reduce the need for customers to visit the store in person, meaning that a lower number of spaces on the site is acceptable."

Spokesman for Tesco added: "We are excited to be bringing Urban Fulfilment Centres to several stores across the UK.

"These planning applications are part of our initial exploration of potential sites. We look forward to updating the local community once plans are confirmed.”

Last year ,Tesco announced plans to roll out urban fulfilment centres at many of its larger stores - with 10 planned for a 2021 opening, to coincide with the huge rise in online shopping brought about by lockdown. A store in West Bromwich was the first "fulfilment centre" to open.