Lidl in Norwich's Mile Cross to become Coop funeral services

If the plans are approved the former Lidl in Drayton Road will become a Coop Funeral Services.

The company, which bought the site in May, has submitted proposals to transform the former supermarket into four large areas – a customer and admin area, a service chapel area and two further large rooms.

The Lidl closed in Drayton Road in 2023 (Image: Newsquest)

The use of these is yet to be revealed.

The exterior will also undergo a facelift, with large portions of the building set to be covered in wood cladding and the rest repainted.

The current large windows will be replaced and new entrances built.

Plans for the new East of England Coop Funeral Services have now emerged (Image: David Clarke and Associates)

When it was first announced, a company spokesman confirmed: "Work has started on site for a new East of England Co-op Funeral branch in Norwich, set to open for the local community later this year."

However, an opening date is yet to be released, with Norwich City Council likely to consider the plans until December 2.

READ MORE: Surprise as plans to transform former Lidl supermarket emerge

Councillors were surprised when the news was first announced, with Chrissie Rumsby, Labour county councillor for Mile Cross, saying: "I would have hoped it would be an East of England Co-operative shop rather than funeral services, but I hope that it will create some jobs for the local people."

The East of England Coop Funeral Services had hope to open before the end of the year (Image: East of England Coop Funeral Services)

The Lidl in Drayton Road served its last customers in Mile Cross on April 30, 2023, after nearly 30 years at the site.

The supermarket firm said the store was no longer "fit for purpose".

It was one of the oldest Lidl stores in Britain, having opened in 1995, just a year after the German brand opened its first 10 UK stores.