Kirklees Council addresses noise complaints made by Shaw Cross residents living near new McDonald's restaurant development

The new restaurant and drive-through is well-underway on the corner of Leeds Road and John Ormsby Way in Shaw Cross.

However, residents say that the building work impacted their mental health after claiming contractors worked outside the legal working hours for some time.

The builders on site were originally working weekdays from 7am-7pm and on Saturdays from 7am-5pm.

Neighbouring home-owners said this was causing serious disruption to their daily lives, when legal working hours should be 9am-1pm on a Saturday and 7am-6pm on weekdays.

However, after Partick Dooly, a resident of nearby Owl Lane for 25 years, complained about this issue to the Kirklees Council Environmental Health department, he received a letter addressing the issue shortly after.

The letter, written by Andrew Robinson, senior technical officer at Kirklees Council, said: “I have made the company aware of their responsibility in this matter and I hope that this will resolve the problem.”

Mr Dooly says he is ‘happy’ with the response and that since he received the letter no work has been done outside of legal working hours.

Although these noise issues have been addressed, residents still have their concerns regarding the opening of the restaurant, which they fear could lead to anti-social behaviour and littering.

The new restaurant is expected to completed in several weeks.

Mr Dooly said: “I am also worried that I will get wrappers thrown into the garden and stuff like that.

“However, the neighbours that live opposite me are more concerned that McDonald’s will put in planning permission for it to be open 24 hours.

“When we originally read the application they wanted to be open from 6am until 11am, but then a planning notice came up that they were going to be open from 5am until midnight.

“Everyone said that this was ridiculous because they will only be shut for five hours - they are ear-marking it for a 24 hour operation.

“We objected to this McDonald’s being built in the first place, and we were mad, but now we just want it finished.

“They are at the stage now where they crane the sections of the building in - it’s unbelievable.

“They have said within five weeks that it will be up and running and serving food.”

The restaurant is due to open next month (December), with a date yet to be confirmed by McDonald’s

A spokesperson from McDonald’s said: “At McDonald’s we strive to be a good neighbour in the communities we serve. We are committed to listening and responding to local feedback throughout the planning process to ensure the creation of a well-integrated scheme.

“We firmly believe we can have a positive impact in this area including the creation of 120 full and part time jobs for local people.

"The new Drive-Thru restaurant in Shaw Cross will be run by a local franchisee who is passionate about the local community and ensuring that the restaurant plays an active role supporting the community through regular litter picks and local partnerships.”