CARPHONE Warehouse is trying to build new car parking spaces at its Birchwood site.

The firm has come in for heavy criticism from residents because staff park on surrounding streets.

But Graham Chisnall, site manager, said: "We have asked architects to prepare drawings and we are half way though preparing to build 80 additional parking spaces on our own site.

"There are some national planning regulations that would normally forbid them to allow us to have further car parking.

"Nevertheless we are going to go for it.

"We are looking at exactly how, under rules, related to our local circumstances, we may be able to overcome that.

"We are putting our money where our mouth is and hopefully this will solve the problem in the long term, and we have had support from the local councillors."

The company has already secured additional car parking with one of our neighbouring businesses which will come into force next month.

It employs 600 staff and will recruit another 100 staff as it expands into neighbouring Chadwick House.

The company has limited car parking spaces because the offices were built to house a small number of staff employed by an engineering firm.

And Government guidelines designed to reduced congestion limit how many car parking spaces companies can build.

Mr Chisnall said: "We fully support all the initiatives to try to keep cars off the road."

"We are at a time when cars are the transport of choice and we are caught in that predicament, even though we provide all the back-up for people to use other methods of transport."