A BATTLE between three supermarket giants over a little Oxfordshire parish has ended with two Co-operatives planning to open within half a mile of each other.

The blue logo national Co-op revealed last week it is preparing to open a store in the former Hinds Head pub in Kingston Bagpuize.

Now rival Midcounties Co-operative has confirmed it is planning to open its own shop just 10 minutes’ walk away at the Cross Roads garage in Southmoor.

It comes after Sainsbury’s tried and failed to open at both sites.

Kingston Bagpuize resident Sarah Curran said her only concern about either store was the extra traffic they would bring to narrow village roads.

She said: “That roundabout by the Hind’s Head is not in a particularly good position for anybody who wants to get in and out of the car park.

“People come flying off the A420 and I’d be concerned drivers aren’t going to expect people to be driving in and out.”

Regarding the possible threat to the parish’s existing shops, she said she was unworried.

She added: “The Log Cabin is a cafe so it’s not going to affect that.

“The One Stop is basically fags, sweets and booze.

"Opinion in the villages is very diverse, and there will be lots of differing opinions.”

The two stores will benefit from the hundreds of homes being built in both villages and planned for the coming years.

The Hinds Head pub on Witney Road, owned by Hawthorn Leisure, closed just before Christmas.

Co-op confirmed last week it is planning to create a 2,500sq ft sales store with bakery and ‘a focus on fresh, health foods’.

Following a £600,000 investment creating ‘up to 20 new jobs’, the store is due to open ‘towards the end of the year’.

The Co-op said it was not uncommon for it to open near other co-operatives, and said these two would not be the closest.

A spokeswoman for The Midcounties Co-operative said: “We are pleased to confirm that a Midcounties Co-operative Food store in Southmoor is currently under construction as part of the Renault garage redevelopment scheme.

“We’re hoping it will be open for business this year and are looking forward to welcoming the community.”

Sainsbury’s first revealed plans to open a store in the Cross Roads garage in Southmoor in 2016.

When Vale of White Horse District Council threw that plan out, saying it would be out-of-keeping with the quiet village, the company submitted a planning application to build a store at the Hinds Head.

Sainsbury’s spokeswoman Angharad Lynch said: “We have decided not to proceed with our plans for a store there,” but declined to comment further.