Our lives have been ruined by a sickening smell – it's lowered our house prices and it's about to get even worse
NEIGHBOURS of a KFC drive thru have warned Britons of the "awful" reality - with disgusting smells, litter and reckless delivery drivers.
It comes as the fast food chain has announced a £1.5 billion expansion plan, with 500 new stores set to hit the UK over the next five years.
10
10
10
10
They hope to rival the growth of other chicken shop chains like Popeyes and Wingstop.
In addition to its 500 new stores, they will upgrade 200 of their existing stores, as well as taking on managers, chefs, and newly created 'guest experience' roles.
Residents in West Wickham, London have warned against the expansion plan, citing littered streets and disgusting smells as just some of the issues the company brought to the area.
The site has undergone many transformations over the last decade or so - beginning as the beloved White Hart pub before becoming a taperia, a steakhouse and, as of 2017, a KFC drive thru.
It is particularly problematic for the residents living on Cavendish Way, as many of their gardens back on to the fast food restaurant's car park.
During the planning process, over 1,200 residents launched a campaign against the proposal.
The proposals were submitted twice, facing significant backlash throughout, before they were approved by Bromley Council, setting a regrettable precedent that 'if you just persevere you can do anything' according to retired city worker and local Tim.
Once approved, Tim said that they completely changed the site - chopping trees down, filling in a pond, and covering the site in tarmac.
He now refuses to visit the site in protest.
Tim said: 'I don't mind a KFC but I refuse to use that one.'
When his daughter and her now-husband stayed at his house, they were under strict instructions not to visit that particular store.
His frustration with that specific branch, which is located off a roundabout at the top of Cavendish Way, stems from the litter and smells.
Tim said that he has seen people drive onto their street to eat the food before throwing their rubbish out of the window, sometimes littering his drive.
While the store 'said they would send someone out to keep the road clean', Tim said, 'they haven't done that.'
Catherine Carol, who lives opposite Tim, has experienced similar issues.
She said: 'It's bloody awful. I came home yesterday and there's a load of rubbish on the street by my house - they don't clear up after themselves.
'We have got masses of boxes around here. It's disgusting.'
In addition to the rubbish, she said the KFC has made it difficult to enjoy the summer weather, with residents of Cavendish Way's gardens facing the drive thru.
She said: 'In the summer you can smell the grease and oil.'
From when the store opens at 10.30am, until it closes at 11pm, residents are subjected to the smell of oil, grease, and fried chicken, as the wind carries the smell into their gardens.
It left Catherine saying: 'I wish it wasn't there.'
Neighbour Dean Ferguson, 62, has found the smell particularly difficult to deal with.
He said: 'The noxious smells you get drafting across at peak times can overwhelm you.'
Like Tim, he has seen people parking on their road to eat the fast food before 'launch[ing] it out the side of the car.'
He added: 'It's really disgusting, people don't seem to care.'
This is an issue he foresaw when the proposals were initially submitted, as he was one of the many residents to object to the plans.
10
10
10
He said: 'I did object to it several years ago. I could see what was going to happen.'
Even when it isn't open, 83-year-old Derek Avent said: 'There's a 24-hour smell that just doesn't go away.'
Derek lives in the retirement village on the opposite side of the KFC.
He said that his ground floor flat is ruined by the smell, particularly on summer days when he opens his window.
Derek added: 'On a sunny day like today when I open the window it's all I can smell, and it's bad.'
Another issue Derek highlighted is the increased traffic caused on quite a small road.
Delivery drivers are a particular concern for retirement home residents as he said: 'All you see going there are just guys on bikes with the big boxes for delivery orders, and they have no care for motorists or people walking nearby.'
Dean said that traffic is especially bad during peak times, like on a Friday, which can 'create quite a bit of congestion.'
Not all residents are as put off by the fast food chain though, as Devin Parmar, 41, said: 'It's actually a selling point - I like the smell.'
He added that 'it's really convenient' and that ultimately he is 'glad it's there.'
Devin did acknowledge the risk of increased litter with the chain's expansion, however, he said: 'that's more on people throwing rubbish on the floor, not throwing it in a bin.'
As long as KFC provides adequate bins and accounts for successful waste management as part of the expansion, Devin thinks it will be a good thing, and the members of the community should learn to take care of their litter.
With the news that the store expansion could create 7,000 jobs, Devin said it was nice to see 'a chain… actually investing in the UK which is a good thing' especially 'at a time where people are complaining about cost of living and unemployment rates.'
Philip Charsley, 60, shared a similarly positive mindset.
He said: 'To be honest I haven't had any problems with it.
While he admitted you do 'occasionally get a smell', he said 'it's no worse than somebody that's having a barbecue.'
His main issue with the chain is that 'it's just not good food' as he would rather cook from scratch than indulge in the deep fried food.
While most residents seemed to agree that its former occupants were better, they were also more apprehensive about what could replace the KFC if it ever shut down.
Tim initially expressed a hope that 'it might close down' as he noted it's 'never really that busy.'
However, he said: 'The worry now is if that does fail, what do you get next? A McDonalds or a Burger King? I just don't want those sorts of places.'
Slightly further down the road is a McDonalds drive thru that Philip says 'causes major traffic issues,' leaving him grateful that the KFC is not very busy.
10
10
10
Long-term residents seem more put-out by the addition to their suburban neighbourhood, while Philip and Devin, who moved to the area four and six years ago respectively, were more positive.
With an average Trip a dvisor rating of 1.7, visitors to West Wickham's KFC complain of rude staff, soggy fries, and incorrect orders.
While the new initiative could provide new job opportunities, residents of West Wickham empathise with Britons across the country who might be feeling apprehensive about the chain's expansion.
Despite Devin's positive attitude, he did acknowledge that 'litter and pest issues will be the main concern for residents across the country as it could cause issues in each of the bubbles near each location.'
A spokesperson for Bromley Council said: "Permission was granted for this development over a decade ago, which followed the usual process for determining Planning applications and considered all representations, including from residents, received at that time.
"We have had few complaints relating to this property, but residents can raise any concerns, which will be investigated through our Planning or Public Protection Enforcement teams as required."
We have approached KFC for comment.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
27 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Baroness Bra and her billionaire husband net a £2million profit as they sell two more UK homes... with friends suggesting they want to start a new life in Miami
Michelle Mone and her billionaire husband Doug Barrowman are offloading some of their British properties as friends say they want to start a new life in Miami, The Mail on Sunday can reveal. Records show Baroness 'Bra', 53, and Mr Barrowman, 60, have sold two Glasgow townhouses to celebrity friends in the last 12 months – making £2 million in profit. A mews house in Chelsea, west London, linked to Ms Mone's son Declan's firm has also been sold for £2.185 million to a senior member of a Middle Eastern Royal Family. And last year the couple sold their £19 million London home and the £6.8 million Lady M yacht. Ms Mone's friends last night said she had told them she is seeking to start afresh in Miami, Florida. The couple are at the centre of an anti-corruption probe by the National Crime Agency which saw £75 million of their assets frozen. The agency is investigating PPE Medpro, led by Mr Barrowman, which was awarded a government contract to supply protective equipment during Covid after being placed in a priority lane on the recommendation of Ms Mone. Paperwork suggests the firm paid Mr Barrowman £60 million in 'profit', prompting him to put £29 million into a trust benefiting Ms Mone and her children. Soon after they received the cash boost, firms registered on the Isle of Man and linked to Mr Barrowman's Knox Group – Breck Ltd, Bagshaw Ltd and Praeban Ltd – bought a series of properties on Park Circus in Glasgow's West End costing £10,025,000. Between December 2020 and August 2022 the firms bought nine homes in the area. Yet in December 2023, a number of the properties were frozen under the Proceeds of Crime Act. Now a Mail on Sunday investigation shows the couple have begun to offload some of their empire. There is no suggestion that any of the sales breached existing orders. One house has been bought by Ms Mone's friend Nick Haddow, a photographer who shot her Ultimo bra campaign with supermodel Helena Christensen in 2006. The house was bought in 2020 for £1.7 million by a firm co-owned by Mr Barrowman's Knox group but records show it was sold to Mr Haddow's company Haddow and Lobjani Ltd last year for £2 million. Another nearby home bought in July 2020 for £1.425 million was sold to a Scottish rock star for £2.8 million earlier this year. Firms linked to the couple are thought to have made around £2 million in profits on the homes. Our probe shows they could be earning around £21,500 a month by letting some of the other homes. The Department of Health is suing PPE Medpro over claims that gowns supplied by the firm were not fit for use.
Times
41 minutes ago
- Times
Reeves considers energy bill subsidy for manufacturers
Rachel Reeves is scrutinising proposals to provide a £1 billion annual subsidy to manufacturers after being warned that Britain faces rapid deindustrialisation if she fails to reduce energy costs. The chancellor is considering lowering energy costs for industry amid fears that they are holding back investment and the country's competitiveness. The plans include a scheme by which taxpayers would compensate manufacturers when the price of electricity rises above a fixed level and the companies would pay the government when the price falls below the agreed level. Several European countries have adopted a similar model, including France, Denmark, Greece and Hungary. The proposal has been seen by Sir Keir Starmer, Jonathan Reynolds, the business secretary, Ed Miliband, the energy secretary, and Reeves. A source close to Reynolds said industrial energy prices were a 'live issue', while a No 10 source confirmed that measures to lower costs were under 'serious consideration'. Reeves is preparing for Wednesday's spending review and the subsequent publication of the industrial strategy for eight key areas of the economy that the government has promised to promote to bolster economic growth. Industry argues that the price it pays for energy is double that paid by European competitors and four times that of America, which is leaving Britain at a disadvantage. It affects not just the country's existing steelmakers, ceramic industry and chemical businesses but also attempts by the government to attract new technologies, such as energy-hungry data centres. In a document seen by The Sunday Times, the industry lobby group Make UK warned the government: 'If we do not address the issue of high industrial energy costs in the UK as a priority we risk the security of our country. We will fail to attract investment in the manufacturing sector and will rapidly enter a phase of deindustrialisation.' Rain Newton-Smith, chief executive of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), warned the chancellor last week that high energy prices were an 'anchor on our ambition, a crack in our economic security and must be fixed'. The plan being drawn up by Make UK, which it calls a contract for difference, would cost £1.1 billion a year for five years from 2027 to provide a guaranteed energy price. But the organisation argues this 'upfront cost' should be considered in the context of its estimates that it would generate a medium-term boost for the economy of about £3 billion a year — or 0.1 per cent of gross domestic product — and also provide more tax revenue. It claims the policy is politically expedient for the government as it would help the red wall constituencies in the Midlands and northern England where Labour is vulnerable to the threat posed by Reform. The biggest energy-intensive companies already receive a subsidy through the British Industry Supercharger scheme, which was set up by the Conservatives in 2024 and which the Financial Times reported last week could become more generous under plans being considered by ministers. But this does not benefit many industrial companies, which still say they are struggling with high energy prices. When she appeared at an event hosted by the CBI last week, Reeves told the audience of business leaders: 'We know that one of the questions that we need to answer is how we're going to make energy more affordable, particularly for some of our most intensive energy-using businesses where the price differential with other countries is just too acute for many to be competitive. That's a question we know we need to answer and we will answer in the industrial strategy in a few weeks.' Other ideas being presented to the government include stepping up drilling in the North Sea, which is likely to create tensions with Miliband. Solving the energy situation is regarded as a crucial plank of the industrial strategy, which the business secretary put out for consultation six months ago to look at eight sectors: advanced manufacturing; clean energy; the creative industries; defence; digital; financial services; life sciences and professional and business services. The result of the consultation had widely been expected to be published alongside Reeves's spending review but it is not now expected for another two weeks. It is understood that the delay has been caused by a desire to resolve the issue of industry energy costs. Stephen Phipson, chief executive of Make UK, said: 'If we don't want to lose the big corporates we have to get competitive and the government is going to have to make tough choices.' Jakob Sigurdsson, chief executive of the FTSE 250 Lancashire chemical business Victrex, said the industry was not 'asking for handouts' but needed a government policy to ensure it was viable. His energy bill is £12 million — double what it was before Russia's invasion of Ukraine pushed up oil prices — while profits are £60 million. 'When you look at it from a global perspective, for the price of power we're paying four to five times the price for electricity that a Chinese company would be paying,' he said, with a similar situation compared to the US. 'It's a cost disadvantage for us so a sound energy policy and how we deal with pricing mechanisms is paramount,' he said. 'This is not going to be solved through incremental changes. There needs to be a bold energy shift.'
Times
41 minutes ago
- Times
Post Office victims offered ‘pathetic' payouts: 0.5% of their claims
Dozens of postmasters caught up in the Post Office Horizon scandal have been offered compensation of just a fraction of their original claims, according to a forensic accountant working on their cases. Kay Linnell, a former chief investigating accountant at the Inland Revenue, now HM Revenue & Customs, described the offers made to victims as 'pathetic' and argued that the compensation schemes seemed 'designed to fail'. She is aware of about 30 subpostmasters who have received offers of between half a per cent and 15 per cent of their original claim. While many are reluctant to speak out while their claims are still being processed, The Sunday Times has been told of one former subpostmistress who has been offered just 0.56 per cent of what she believed she was entitled to. Linnell, 70, has been fighting alongside Sir Alan Bates for 12 years to secure justice for hundreds of subpostmasters who were wrongly fired and prosecuted by the Post Office due to financial shortfalls in their branch accounts. Those shortfalls were found to be the fault of the Horizon IT system — yet the Post Office continued to prosecute victims even after it was alerted to potential problems. Linnell, who was appointed OBE in January for services to justice, worked with Bates's Justice For Subpostmasters Alliance (JFSA) free of charge and was one of the figures portrayed in the ITV drama series Mr Bates vs the Post Office. She became involved through her business partner, Barbara Jeremiah, who got to know Jo Hamilton, one of the most high-profile victims, because she bought lunch at her Post Office in their small Hampshire village every day on her way to work. More recently, Linnell has been helping with compensation claims for the 555 subpostmasters who secured a High Court ruling against the Post Office in 2019. They are eligible for compensation via the group litigation order (GLO) scheme, which is one of four schemes being administered by the Department for Business and Trade. Claimants can opt for a fixed sum of £75,000 or to seek an individual settlement of their losses, likely to require a higher payout. The claims are initially assessed by the business department but if there are disputes the cases can be referred to an independent panel for review and ultimately to the independent reviewer, who is a retired High Court judge. As of March, 282 of the 446 claims made had been paid, although 155 of those settled accepted the £75,000 fixed payment. However, growing numbers of subpostmasters believe the scheme is denying them the compensation they deserve. Last month, Bates said the government had turned it into a 'quasi kangaroo court', and assurances that the scheme would be 'non-legalistic' had turned out to be 'worthless'. Officials have been demanding documents from claimants that many had lost years ago. Bates also revealed he had been presented with a 'take it or leave it' offer amounting to less than half his original claim. Linnell said she had been contacted by about 45 to 50 claimants whose offers appeared to be 'substantially undervalued'. She added about 30 of those had received offers worth less than one sixth of their claim, adding these were the cases 'I get most upset about'. Linnell said that 'when you boil down the patheticness of the offers', they were the result of the scheme administrators putting a much lower value on the loss of investments that subpostmasters suffered when they were forced to sell assets to cover their account shortfalls. She added that a similar approach was being taken towards loss of future earnings — the amount subpostmasters should be compensated for losing their livelihoods. Linnell cited the case of one subpostmistress who has been offered 0.56 per cent of her claim. While the woman wishes to remain anonymous, she became a victim of the Horizon scandal shortly after purchasing a small Post Office branch that had generated low profits under the previous owner. She took out a substantial bank loan to add a café and shop. However, when the branch reopened after renovations, she was unable to pay suppliers because the Post Office had taken funds to recoup shortfall losses that were, in fact, the result of Horizon. This forced her to close the branch just six weeks later, at which point the bank demanded full repayment of her loan. The former subpostmistress contacted Linnell when putting together her compensation claim. 'Her claim had gone through all the checks Alan and I agreed should be in place, before the department started moving the goalposts,' Linnell said. 'It came back with an offer that was so pathetic.' Linnell said the dispute arose because the officials assessing her claim did 'not accept her trading and profit forecasts'. Instead, they cited the previous owner's revenue streams, despite the fact that the investments made by the subpostmistress would have meant that the business probably would have generated higher returns in future. 'I've gone back to her lawyers and suggested they submit the business plan that the bank happily accepted when issuing the loan,' Linnell said. Linnell, like Bates, believes the GLO scheme has become overly bureaucratic and legalistic, pointing out that three law firms are involved in the process. 'This is a pro bono scheme, it doesn't need to be following strict legal principles,' she said. She also believes that despite promises made by ministers, the officials involved in the schemes are attempting to reduce the total amount paid out in compensation. Labour has set aside £1.8 billion to settle claims. Linnell added: 'They are finding every legal loophole they can think of, under civil litigation rules, not to pay. It's designed to fail. What they are trying to do is to keep a handle on cashflow.' The government disputes this characterisation. A Department for Business and Trade spokesman said: 'We recognise the suffering that sub-postmasters have endured, which is why this government developed our compensation arrangement in discussion with Sir Alan Bates as well as Dr Kay Linnell and their lawyers, with £964 million having now been paid to over 6,800 claimants across all the Horizon schemes. 'Victims who are unhappy with their offer have access to legal support and an independent panel to review their claim.'
