Work starts on town centre anchor as Whitehill & Bordon regeneration shifts up a gear
Spades are in the ground for a new 16,000 sq ft Sainsbury's in Whitehill & Bordon, a visible sign that the town centre project is moving from plans to delivery. On a former Army site that has already seen 2,400 homes built by the Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO) and its partners, the supermarket is set to open in summer 2026 and support around 75 jobs.
The official groundbreaking in June 2025 drew council leaders, development partners, local business owners and residents. Construction work began after Easter and will now run through the rest of the year. The store will include an Argos click & collect service, folding general merchandise into the weekly shop and bringing a mainstream retailer into the heart of the new town centre.
Cllr Andy Tree, EHDC Deputy Leader and Portfolio Holder for the Whitehill & Bordon area, who also leads Whitehill Town Council, summed up the mood: "Having announced they were coming to Whitehill & Bordon in 2024, I am delighted to celebrate the start of the building work by taking part in the breaking ground ceremony. I look forward to welcoming Sainsbury's to Whitehill & Bordon when the store opens, including the Argos click & collect. Fellow local residents want to see delivery of facilities and this is a very positive step forward. Thank you to all those who work behind the scenes who have driven this project to fruition."
The supermarket is billed as the cornerstone of the emerging town centre. That matters because anchor stores set the pace: they draw regular footfall, help nearby independents trade throughout the week, and give confidence for other units to open. The timing aligns with upgrades at The Shed—already a go-to for dining and entertainment—which have been completed, and with a new local taskforce created to speed up delivery across the site.
What the new store brings—and what’s next
At 16,000 sq ft, the store sits in the mid-sized bracket—big enough for a full grocery offer without becoming an out-of-town box. Expect the usual fresh food counters, bakery space, household essentials and a modest non-food range, with Argos click & collect acting as a bridge to wider products. Final fit-out details will be confirmed closer to opening, but the format is designed to serve weekly family shops as well as quick top-ups.
Around 75 jobs are forecast across customer service, stock, bakery and specialist departments, plus roles tied to Argos operations. Employers typically recruit a mix of full-time and part-time positions, with training provided ahead of opening. Hiring is likely to ramp up in the months before launch, and schemes that encourage local applicants—especially younger jobseekers and returners—are expected to feature.
Site preparation after Easter cleared the way for groundworks and utilities. The next visible phases should include the steel frame going up, weatherproofing the shell, and interior fit-out. If the schedule holds, major construction will run through late 2025, with commissioning and staff training in spring 2026 ahead of a summer opening.
Regeneration is broader than one building. Whitehill & Bordon’s plan aims to turn the once military-dominated area into a full-service town centre with homes, shops, public services and green spaces linked by new streets. Alongside the supermarket, a Health Hub is in the pipeline, with construction due to follow completion of the store. The Shed’s recent refresh strengthens the leisure side—food traders, events, and small businesses—so that daytime grocery trips and evening visits feed off each other.
Transport and access are part of the picture. Designs typically include dedicated parking, step-free access, and safe routes for pedestrians and cyclists connecting to surrounding neighbourhoods. Cycle racks and electric vehicle charging points are now common in new builds of this type, and energy-efficient lighting, refrigeration and heat recovery systems are often specified to keep running costs and emissions down. Final features will be set out in the detailed plans and planning conditions.
Local leaders say the newly formed taskforce is there to keep the pressure on delivery—unblocking utilities, coordinating works, and aligning timetables between the supermarket, public realm, and community facilities. With multiple partners on a complex brownfield site, that kind of coordination tends to make the difference between neat plans and real-world progress.
For residents, this is about choice and convenience. Many currently travel out of town for larger weekly shops; a centrally located supermarket should cut those journeys and keep spending local. The Argos click & collect adds another reason to stay in town, whether it’s school supplies or small appliances picked up alongside groceries.
Construction inevitably brings disruption. Expect temporary traffic management, delivery lorries at set hours, and some noise during the heaviest works. Contractors generally publish schedules and mitigation measures—like on-site parking for workers and dust controls—to limit the impact on neighbours. Those details usually appear in notices and on display boards as the build advances.
Economically, an anchor tenant tends to lift the whole scheme: more predictable footfall for cafés and services, better prospects for letting nearby units, and a clearer case for public transport improvements and active travel links. It also signals that the town centre has passed a key tipping point—from early promises to physical delivery.
In short, the supermarket is a practical milestone. It gives the new town centre a daily heartbeat, supports existing venues like The Shed, and sets up the next phase—the Health Hub and more community space—to follow on. If the timeline holds, Whitehill & Bordon will spend the next 12 months watching a frame turn into a store, and the 12 months after that watching a plan turn into a place people use every day.
Write a comment