It’s the Hampshire food store with some very green credentials.

As previously reported by the Daily Echo the steel structure of Marks and Spencer’s Eastleigh outlet has already been completed, with the multi-million pound British brand due to start fitting it out in the spring.

The Twyford Road Simply Food branch will be 16,000 square feet, with a mezzanine level, café, and around 45 car parking spaces.

But there will also be a seven metre tank for harvesting rainwater - already installed under the car park. It will hold 18200 litres of water which will be piped through to the store for flushing the in-house loos.

An innovative root space crate system has been dug into the ground under the car park to make room for the roots of six of the eight trees .

And as is a common feature in other M&S stores throughout the country the Twyford Road side of the building will have a ‘living wall’ - a vertical wall with plants rowing in soil.

Lydia Hopton, Property Plan A Manager at M&S said: “At M&S sustainability is fundamental to how we build and operate our stores. The standout sustainability features of our new Foodhall in Eastleigh are the living wall and rainwater harvesting tank.

“The living wall will be made up of hundreds of different species, including herbs and annual and perennial flowers. The plants in the green wall will offer a source of nectar for butterflies and bees and seeds for birds and will provide improved thermal performance and insulation, delivering carbon reduction. It is irrigated by rainwater which is captured on the roof by the rainwater harvesting system.

“We are really excited to feature a living green wall as part of our store and we hope customers enjoy the visual impact it will create”.

Eastleigh borough council said the project has been built in compliance with BREEAM - Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method - the world’s longest established method of assessing, rating, and certifying the sustainability of buildings.

A council spokesperson said, “It is council policy for all non-domestic developments of a certain size in the borough to follow the international BREEAM standard

“Most council’s follow the BREEAM standards and to help ensure that the new M&S Foodhall achieves a very good BREEAM rating we will be including a number of sustainable features including a rainwater harvesting facility and a living wall.

“BREEAM helps developers make effective use of resources and by focusing on sustainable value and efficiency it will help make this M&S development an attractive property investment and provide a sustainable place to work and to visit.”

Although there is no opening date yet for the shop which sits adjacent to Lidl on Coles Close, as previously reported by the Daily Echo the build has caused controversy, with Eastleigh borough council refusing to clarify exactly how the £3.6 million borrowed by the council was being spent, and whether it was borrowed in compliance with M&S specifications.