BAKERS Greggs has been given permission for alterations to its new store near Pontypool.

The new unit at the Usk Vale Park estate, adjacent to the A4042 Usk Road at Cwmoody, opened in June.

An application to alter the front of the unit to create a storefront and to add air conditioning condenser units and two extractor vents has now been approved by Torfaen Borough Council planners.

An existing shutter will be set behind an aluminum-framed storefront with large glazing features, new front door, and accessibility ramp.

One objector raised concerns about the impact of customer parking on lorry access to other units, that parking spaces may be taken up by customers calling at the bakery and that the chain’s popularity could cause vehicles to queue on the highway.

But planning officer Tom Braithwaite wrote, in his report, that those issues were outside the consideration of the application which was only concerning the storefront and extraction equipment and said they would have been taken account of when the change of use application was considered. He wrote: “In light of this, the representation has been given little weight in this assessment.”