RESIDENTS in East Swindon will be celebrating on Monday when they can finally grace the aisles of the new Morrisons store when it officially opens.

The £15m superstore which has been in the making since September last year is built on the former site of Dorcan House.

In December 2012 Swindon Council granted planning permission for the supermarket to build the 25,000sq ft store, with 250 car parking spaces available for customers.

The store has provided residents with 221 new jobs, 114 of which went to people who were previously unemployed.

Coun Derique Montaut (Lab, Liden, Eldene and Park South) said: “I think it’s great news particularly in this economic climate. “When we met with the management team of Morrisons we said that we wanted there to be a provision of at least 100 jobs to be employed locally and it sounds like they have exceeded that.

“However, the residents are concerned about whether a post office will be available and it really needs to provide those services that were taken away as part of the redevelopment.”

The new store is also a Craft Skills Academy meaning that many of its staff are trained in traditional skills including butchery, fishmongery, bakery and flower arranging.

The skilled staff will be able to advise customers, offer cooking tips and suggest food combinations and suitable wine accompaniments.

Store General Manager Paul Raine said: “We wanted to create an experience that was different from other supermarkets, offering customers a wide range of fresh products at great value and excellent customer service.

“The team has worked hard to train as specialists in areas such as wine, butchery and bakery and the fresh market concept means that many products are created by these specialists in-store each morning.

“We’re delighted that, as a result of this new store opening, we have helped create new jobs in the local area, and are now looking forward to welcoming new shoppers into our Swindon store.”

Customers visiting the store will be able to see the workers hard at work with bakers kneading dough and butchers making fresh sausages on the counter.

Visitors can choose from at least 140 different cuts of meat in the butchery, 80 cheeses from around the world in the deli and up to 48 varieties of fresh baked goods available in the bakery.