A new fish and chip shop is set to open in Hazlemere just 15 doors down from an existing one– with the owners saying the new business will “not be good” for them.

Despite opposition from residents, Churchill’s Fish and Chips is set to open in place of the former NatWest Bank, 33 Park Parade, even though the Oriental Wok Fish Bar already serves the traditional takeaway food at 1 Park Parade.

Workers at the Oriental Wok Fish Bar say they hope their customers will still come to them after the new chip shop opens, but that the new takeaway will not be good for their business.

They said: “It is not good for us. We don’t want two fish and chip shops here. They could have opened any other shop there but not another chip shop. Our customers say they will still come here instead, but we don’t know what will happen once they are open.”

Ant Sagar, who has owned Thameside Carpets next door to the former NatWest site for 30 years, said a petition against the new chip shop gained over 1,200 signatures, but Wycombe District Council gave Churchill’s permission to open so it would “contribute to the vitality and attractiveness” of the area.

Mr Sagar said: “No one wanted a chip shop. All the local people said why do we want another one when we have a perfectly good one on The Parade already? Everyone you talk to is annoyed about it.

“We were trying harder than anyone to get this stopped but the council said you are allowed so many fast food outlets per area and as the ratio was below the allowed amount, there was nothing we could do.

“I feel so sorry for them. We have always had a code of conduct down here, we would always try and protect the businesses. If we were leaving our shop now, out of courtesy we would not let someone turn it into a chip shop or a hardware shop when we already have one here.

“Obviously the people who own the shop have gone with the company paying the highest amount. It is genuinely a shame because I haven’t spoken to a single person who has said they want it here and people are still coming in to protest.”

James Lipscombe, managing director at The Chesterford Group, which owns Churchill’s Fish and Chips, said the family-owned company are passionate about sourcing fish sustainably.

He said: “We will be making a substantial investment in new equipment and the refurbishment of the current NatWest Bank site to ensure we give our customers a fantastic consumer experience and we will be creating up to 20 new jobs for local people.

“As a business we are passionate about supporting the local communities where our stores operate from and we do this through sponsorship of local sports teams and support for fund raising events that take place to benefit the local community.”