Can We Really Trust Aldi? What You Should Know 

Aldi States:

• An investment of £7 million into the local economy: benefitting people in Stanmore and the wider area. 

• The creation of up to 40 new, full-time equivalent jobs for local people, paid at industry-leading rates; starting from £13.65 per hour in London.

Does it add up?:

• Aldi claims its £7M Stanmore store will “boost the local economy.” Translation: boost Aldi’s profits. The 40 “new jobs”? Just staff shuffled from existing locla supermarkets.

• Stanmore’s already overflowing with supermarkets – Sainsbury’s, Lidl & Tesco Express and also independent stores - Aldi’s own documents admit it’s “vital and viable.” So why another store?

• The real effect? A 25% hit to independents, 15% to supermarkets, and more “To Let” signs. All while flunking both the Sequential (build in town first) and Retail Impact (don’t destroy locals) Tests.

• No need. No benefit. High street wreck incoming.

Aldi States:

• The site currently comprises the former Marsh Lane Gas Works, which is currently disused and half of which cannot be developed due to the presence of below-ground services. The site is therefore not suitable or practical for residential development.

Does it add up?:

• Aldi says its site’s “unsuitable for housing,” so of course, that means it’s ideal for a supermarket, right? Ignore the fact that Harrow’s Local Plan designates it for homes, not a discount store, and it’s miles from any retail hub.

• The site fails both the Sequential Test and NPPF, with no convincing proof that better locations are unavailable. With just 0.43 hectares of usable land, even developers won’t touch it.

• What’s the result? More traffic, more pollution, and a big blow to Harrow’s planning integrity. Time to rethink – maybe some green space for the community instead?

Aldi States:

• Aldi stocks a carefully selected range of approximately 1,800 core exclusive products, compared with supermarkets such as Asda or Tesco that may stock over 10 times that number of product lines. As a result, an Aldi food store will require only three to four deliveries per day.

• Aldi’s unique delivery system enables products to be transferred from the vehicle straight to store without the need for external movement – minimising the potential for any disruption.

• Unlike most supermarkets, which operate extended or 24-hour opening periods, our stores typically open between 8am and 10pm Monday to Saturday, and between 10am and 4pm on Sundays.

Does it add up?:

• Aldi brags about its “exclusive” 1,800 core products, but LIDL down the road does the same. Aldi’s delivery system? It’s called a delivery trolley, and every supermarket uses them.

• But the real kicker is the traffic. Aldi’s own numbers predict 1,600+ vehicle trips on a typical Saturday, including a peak of 213 cars in an hour. Add 119 more cars during weekday rush hour, plus extra pedestrians, HGVs, and Uber drop-offs. And yes, this is on top of the current traffic!

• Aldi’s figures underplay the mess this store will cause. In short: Aldi wants to set up shop in a place already served by Sainsbury, LIDL & Tesco Express, with no unique offering, and disastrous traffic impacts. Time to say no.

Aldi States:

• Over 60% of respondents to our consultation felt that a new Aldi store would benefit the area.

Does it add up?:

• Aldi’s “consultation” on its Marsh Lane supermarket is nothing more than a PR stunt. Their so-called Feedback Report has no location data, so who knows where responses came from. For a project that’ll impact local roads and homes, this is sloppy – or suspicious.

• The survey? Packed with biased questions and no space for real objections or alternative ideas, just vague buzzwords like “convenience” and “affordability” (hello, LIDL). Aldi claims 61% support from 529 people, but over 1,000 have signed a petition against it, and most formal comments on Harrow’s portal are a hard “no.”

• No changes made based on feedback, no breakdown of who actually responded, and no outreach to local councillors or environmental groups. When 250+ objections came in, Aldi went radio silent.

• In short, Aldi’s consultation is just window dressing. Harrow’s planners should focus on the real community voice, not Aldi’s PR campaign.

Aldi States:

• The development will take into consideration and respect the neighbours on Wychwood Avenue.

• There will be a secondary access from Wychwood Avenue for pedestrians and cyclists – this access will not be open to customers.

• Whitchurch Primary School & Nursery and Avanti House Secondary School are to the southwest of the site.

• The proposed development seeks to avoid any unacceptable impact to neighbours, both during and after construction.

Does it add up?:

• Aldi’s proposed store isn’t just another supermarket—it’s a recipe for more traffic, pollution, noise, and crime.

• Pollution? The site’s in an Air Quality Management Area, yet Aldi’s assessment is laughably vague—no real modelling or solutions. Children will be breathing in harmful air on their way to school, with PM2.5 and NO₂ still above legal limits.

• Noise? Aldi’s 7-day schedule means early deliveries, HGVs reversing, and constant noise outside residential homes. The Noise Impact Assessment? It doesn’t hold up.

• Crime? Aldi’s “low intervention” plan includes no clear security staff and lacks detailed safeguards , leaving shoppers and local residents vulnerable to antisocial behaviour.

• And for the kids? No health study, just traffic, fumes, and hazardous road crossings.

• Aldi’s proposal ignores planning regulations and threatens the health and safety of Stanmore. It’s time to reject this plan.

Aldi States:

• At Aldi, we’re committed to minimising our environmental impact and leading the way in carbon reduction efforts.

• Provide a biodiversity net gain of over 20%.

Does it add up?:

• Aldi’s Stanmore scheme is a masterclass in eco-illiteracy. So what’s Aldi’s plan? A 29.4% biodiversity loss, in flat contradiction to the Environment Act 2021, which demands a 10% gain. Compensation? None. Mitigation? Forget it.

• They also fancy chopping down two mature oaks and damaging more. The Tree Protection Plan? Missing in action at submission — a nice touch of procedural sloppiness.

• With an Urban Greening Factor of just 0.252 (target: 0.4), this isn’t green infrastructure — it’s a concrete heat island, helpfully designed to flood the drains and bake the neighbours.

• There’s no zero-carbon strategy (breaching London Plan Policy SI2), no carbon offsetting, no post-occupancy monitoring, and no Circular Economy Statement (Policy SI7). Sustainability? Only on the label.

• Carbon-heavy, nature-hostile and policy-noncompliant — this box-store throwback should be shelved permanently. Harrow’s planners should scan the regulations and hit reject.

Aldi States:

• The new store has been designed to respect the neighbouring Stanmore Marsh and Marsh Lane park, and not impact these spaces.

Does it add up?:

• Aldi’s big idea for Stanmore? Build on a contaminated ex-gasworks, loaded with ammonium, cyanide, hydrocarbons and PAHs, perched above a sensitive aquifer and draining straight towards Stanmore Marsh and Edgware Brook. What could possibly go wrong?

• Despite confirmed pollution and signs it’s already spreading, there’s no full remediation plan, no downstream testing, and no Environment Agency approval. Instead, Aldi’s gone for the budget option: “do nothing”, citing cost. A bold move that also happens to breach the Water Framework Directive, Environmental Permitting Regs, and the NPPF, to name a few.

• Flooding? Oh yes — the site’s flagged as medium to high risk, with predicted flood depths up to 0.6m. But the Flood Risk Assessment lowballs climate impacts, and their SuDS system helpfully funnels runoff — untreated — into the Marsh, with no hydrocarbon filters, no sediment traps, no climate resilience & no maintenance plan.

• So: contaminated land, flood risk, no clean-up, and a drainage plan that turns a nature reserve into a sump. Aldi might call it regeneration. The rest of us might prefer regulation — and a firm refusal.