Warehouse plan for pharmacy 'bursting at seams'

Gompels currently occupies about 120,000sq ft of space on the Bowerhill Industrial Estate

A community pharmacy which is "bursting at the seams" said a new warehouse would give it the space it "desperately" needed.

Gompels Healthcare Ltd has applied for permission to build a new site near Bath Road in Melksham, which would provide space for "storage and more efficient distribution".

"Covid accelerated our growth and our team is doing fantastic work building our customer base so we desperately need more space so we don't let our customers down," the application reads.

Wiltshire Council is expected to make a decision on the plans by the end of March.

The warehouse, which could be built on a field south of the A365, would also include office space and parking, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

"We have been based in Melksham for over 50 years, starting from a small pharmacy on the High Street and growing to occupy over 120,000 sq of space on the Bowerhill Industrial Estate, turning over £150m and employing over 130 people in the local area," it added.

Gompels Healthcare Ltd, a family run wholesaler, said the warehouse would free up the existing Gompels site on Swift Way.

"This site to the South of the A365 has been chosen following an extensive search over the last five years," it added.

"The site is immediately available and deliverable within a short timescale."

Gompels said it was "bursting at the seams" and needed more space to ensure it did not "let customers down"

Gompels describes itself as "a clean and quiet business".

"We do not pollute, attract pests or cause noise pollution," the application continued.

"Quiet electric forklifts are used and nearly all deliveries are during the daytime.

"Noise produced at the proposed site will be less than at the existing site as everything will be located in one building, removing the need for stock to be transported outside between buildings."