The Kentford North branch was a former Little Chef restaurant located on the eastbound side of the A14 near Kentford, Suffolk.
Address and Onsite Information[]
ADDRESS: A14 Eastbound, Kentford, Newmarket, Suffolk, CB8 7PZ
ONSITE FACILITIES: None
LITTLE CHEF NOW: Derelict
For more information, visit Motorway Services Online
History[]
Opening in July 1979, Kentford North was built as one half of a dual sided Little Chef site on the A45 Kentford Bypass, with Kentford South on the westbound side making up the other half. The restaurants replaced the original Kentford branch, located on the old A45 (now B1506), which closed by 1976 after it was bypassed by the new A45. Both restaurants were built alongside BP filling stations and were housed inside of rectangular buildings, although Kentford North was slightly smaller than Kentford South.
Following the opening of the M1-A1 link road section of the A14 (Catthorpe to Huntingdon) in 1994, the A45 between Cambridge and Felixstowe was re-numbered the A14.
Compared to other service stations on the A14, Kentford Services benefited from a more formalised layout, with its long slip roads, large car parks and landscaped surroundings. At one point, a flower display reading LITTLE CHEF was planted on the embankment of the eastbound services.
In July 1997, the BP filling stations on each side had closed. This was most likely due to the close proximity of the nearby Newmarket Services a few miles to the west, which not only served the A14 but the A11 as well. Although the filling station canopies were demolished, the shop buildings were left to stand, although these were boarded up.
In 2004, the Little Chefs on both sides of the Kentford Services had ceased trading, following the cull of 131 Little Chef restaurants by then owners, Permira, nationwide.
In September 2005, photos of the abandoned Kentford North services were posted on nosher.net (see photos here). This included photos of the former filling station shop, which at this point was badly vandalised and in a state of disrepair, and internal and external shots of the Little Chef restaurant. Further photos ( see photos here) were uploaded to the site in January 2006, by which point the Little Chef had suffered at the hands of vandals and was in a badly damaged state compared to September 2005. The former restaurant was boarded up by February 2006; although its condition continued to worsen over time.
In 2007, the derelict filling station shop buildings on each side were demolished; however, the former Little Chef buildings were retained.
Despite the state of the building, some items from the Little Chef's operation still remain to this day, including childrens menus and the SELLING CODE board in the manager's office.
As of 2025, nothing has ever replaced the Little Chef at Kentford North, although the site was previously listed by Ashwell Rogers. The overgrown state of the services, coupled with the slip roads to and from the A14 falling short of modern standards, means that the services would be highly unlikely to reopen in the near future.
Gallery[]
