PLANS to renovate a shop closed for more than a year have been submitted after a successful campaign by villagers to re-open it.

The Co-op has come up with a new plan to renovate the Best-One shop on Station Road in Purton, following a pressure campaign last year.

The plans include demolishing the northern part of the building, to be replaced by a single story extension and the widening of the main entrance facing the road and increasing the amount of shop floor space.

An external storage unit and cold rooms are also planned, with the plant noise kept to a minimum by an acoustic noise enclosed.

The design and access statement added: “It is considered that by improving the appearance of the building, and modernising the plant equipment, it will reduce the potential for noise and disturbance.

"Therefore, these proposals will not negatively impact the amenity of neighbouring residents.”

The shop had been left empty for more a year and renovations halted so villagers started a petition in October to pressure the company to either give up the lease or start the work.

An online petition amassed more than 2,000 signatures and was presented to Co-op from the campaigners.

After villagers made repeated calls and emails, which they say fell on deaf ears, in December they met with three chiefs from the company who committed to investing £1.3m in renovating the property, admitting that it had needed more work than they originally thought.

If the plans are given the green light work could start in June for it to be completed by October 2019.

There is a separate bid to re-introduce the post office into the shop which will have to take place once the shop is open.

At the moment people in the village are relying on a weekly postal van to send their mail and local businesses, including the recently opened community Cafe, say they need to travel to Royal Wootton Bassett to bank deposits.