Necton services
A47 at Necton
(Limited road signage.)
PE37 8FP
map and directions
Single site located at a junction.
Where the A47 skirts the edge of Necton, the ASDA forecourt gets minimal "Services" signs.
Facilities
Catering: Costa Drive Thru Outdoor Space: Grass verge only; public footpath connections Charging Points: InstaVolt 125kW CCS & 125kW CHAdeMO Forecourt: ASDA Express, Costa Express, Rollover, Jet Wash, Free Cash Machine
Parking Prices
Short stay customer car parking is available at both facilities. No HGV parking is available.
Parking in the Costa car park is limited to 45 minutes maximum stay and is strictly enforced by Civil Enforcement Ltd.
This information is provided to us by third parties. You should always check with staff on site.
Contact Details
đą Address:
Rudge Way
Necton
Swaffham
PE37 8FP
Trivia and History
The old line of the A47 at Necton divided a petrol station to the north, and the Necton Diner to the south. This was a truckstop, with its own muddy parking facility to the rear.
Early History
In late 1954, the Rudge family took over Necton garage and filling station. At the time, the filling station was offering Shell fuels from two pumps. This was joined by a café in Summer 1955, with a former car sales showroom next to the garage on Tuns Road being converted to facilitate this.
Plans to realign the A47 away from Necton village were announced in the late 1950s, which gave the family the opportunity to acquire the surrounding land to the existing site. As a result, a new filling station and café were built in 1960, with the filling station opening in late 1960 and the new café opening in Spring 1961. The new facilities were split by the old alignment of the A47, with the filling station positioned to the north and the café to the south.
A new garage workshop was built behind the café in 1967 due to a decline in sales. Following a death in the family, the Rudge family later parted with the site in 1973. More about the Rudge family's operation of the site can be found on the 'Necton Cafe, Fuel Station and Garage' website here.
The new owners post-Rudge family soon sold the site on. The site was split into two in 1978, with Big Fry (Norfolk) taking operation of the café and J&J Howlet (Garage) Ltd. taking the garage and workshop. The café traded under the name 'Hungry Horse' for a short period before becoming more commonly known as the Necton Diner.
Redevelopment and New Use
The forecourt closed in the early 2000s and became a van dealership. The café had closed by Summer 2011, and both buildings were soon put up for sale.
A proposal in 2014 saw the café and forecourt buildings demolished and replaced with 31 homes as part of a new residential development. This was met with severe opposition from existing residents in Necton and the plans were later dropped. A new proposal in late 2017 saw the site retain its use as a roadside facility with a new filling station, Costa drive-thru unit and electric vehicle charging hub all put forward.
The new roadside facilities were approved and demolition works began in Summer 2018. The new Co-op convenience store and filing station opened on 21 June 2019, with an official opening ceremony held. Jackie Rogers (nee Rudge) attended on behalf of the Rudge family and the new spine road through the site is named Rudge Way after the family.
The Costa drive-thru later followed on 11 September 2019, with a new eight-bay InstaVolt electric vehicle charging hub going live in June 2020.
Following the acquisition of the Co-op estate, the forecourt was sold to Asda Express in 2022. The site relaunched under the brand on 3 November 2023.
Alternatives
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| Swaffham (2 miles) | Services on the A47 | Thickthorn (23 miles) |