SUPERSTORE giant Tesco is set to make a double swoop into Hyndburn.

As well as the proposed move into Great Harwood, it is now planning to build a £30M store in Accrington.

It has earmarked the disused site on Eagle Street, formerly occupied by the Skill Centre, next to the railway station car park.

A public consultation exhibition, giving residents the opportunity to have their say, will be held this weekend

Research is said to have shown that £100M on weekly food shopping is lost to the borough each year as people head out of Accrington to nearby towns.

If given the go-ahead, construction work on the 8,000 square metre store would begin within the year and be completed by the start of 2009.

It would be classed as a medium-sized store and would be raised and built on stilts with some parking underneath, a relatively new design for Tesco.

The new store would generate around 450 jobs for local people and there would be about 600 parking spaces.

Tesco believes it would improve the appearance and access to the station.

A spokesman told the Observer: "In Accrington there is some feeling that a lot of people travel out of town to do their shopping. This new store would help bring it back into the town.

"We want to know what people think about the plans. We hope that they support us because it will be good for the town, not only for people's shopping experience but in terms of jobs and a boost for the local economy."

A public exhibition will be held in Accrington Town Hall today between 10am and 4pm and tomorrow between 9.30am and noon.

Images will be on display and representatives will be available to discuss the plans.

If built, the Accrington store would be twice the size of the proposed Tesco in Queen Street, Great Harwood, which has been surrounded by controversy.

Traders there have hit out at the plans amid fears that a superstore would have a detrimental affect on business.

A special public meeting was called in Great Harwood to give residents the opportunity to hear more about the proposed plans and ask any questions about the scheme.

A planning application is expected to be submitted to Hyndburn Council in the near future.