PLANS to create a 1,000 space car park in Hatfield have been rubber stamped by councillors.

The application, from internet grocery retailer Ocado, was approved by Welwyn Hatfield Council’s planning control committee on Thursday.

The company, based off Gypsy Moth Avenue on the Hatfield Business Park, can now add a new deck to its existing 484 space staff car park.

This will provide parking for an additional 566 vehicles – which Ocado says is necessary to support its expansion plans.

Speaking at the meeting, Ocado’s head of business development, Paul Stewart, said: “We are currently achieving 35 per cent year-on-year growth and we are now the third biggest online supermarket in the UK.”

The firm, which has been based in Hatfield since 2002, plans to take on an extra 1,400 employees, most of which, Mr Stewart said, would be recruited from Times Territory.