First part of plans for new Worcester town revealed
10,000 homes are set to be built in the next 20 years.
The first part of a huge plan to build thousands of homes next to the city has come forward.
St Modwen Homes and Hallam Land Management have put forward initial plans to build 2,500 new homes between the M5 near Worcester and Worcestershire Parkway.
The application includes the first quarter of the 10,000 homes planned for the area in the next 20 years and beyond that will eventually form a new town around the railway station.
St Modwen has nearly 240 acres and plans to build up to 1,250 homes south of Pershore Road with Hallam’s 230 acres to the north of Pershore Road, a stone’s throw from Whittington and just under two miles from the listed Spetchley Park, also set for 1,250 new homes.
A combined 130 acres of employment land would also be built across the two sites as well as two primary schools, and two new neighbourhood centres.
The developers have not yet submitted a planning application but have instead put forward a ‘screening opinion’ which means Wychavon District Council will have to rule whether the huge plan needs an environmental impact assessment before it is formally put forward.
The work would start in 2025 with the first people moving into homes by 2026 and commercial space by 2027. The remainder of the work would be finished by 2032 and 2035 respectively.
In 2021, St Modwen, the developer behind several other major schemes in and around the city including the nearby Weogoran Park off Whittington Road and the 255-home plan just south of St Peters, revealed it had joined up with landowner Merton College, based 60 miles away in Oxford, to bring the plan to life.
And earlier this month, a group of landowners and housing developers, which included St Modwen and Hallam Land, joined forces and launched a month-long public consultation, which runs until November 6, asking for views on its plans to build thousands of new homes, schools, leisure and community facilities, shops, parks and a major new link road.
The thousands of homes would neighbour other huge schemes planned for the edge of Worcester – including more than 2,200 homes between St Peter’s and Norton as part of an already approved ‘urban extension.’
The urban extension also includes plans for a care home, hotel, schools, a leisure centre and outdoor sports facilities, offices and employment space, allotments, parks and green space, a gym, shops and restaurants.