CAMPAIGNERS have voiced concerns that a controversial business park in Worcester will contribute to flooding after a brook burst its banks.

Laugherne Brook already takes in water that runs off the nearby Grove Farm site, in St John's. But members of the Grove Farm Residents Voice (GFRV) group, who strongly oppose the development, fear it will not be able to cope when 27 office blocks and industrial units, with an expected influx of up to 4,000 people, are built.

The developer has now assured worried residents that a number of controls will be in place to ensure the volume of run-off water does not increase and the site alone will not cause flooding.

The brook burst its banks when torrential rain fell across Worcestershire on Wednesday.

As a result, members of GFRV questioned how developer Spen Hill Developments could publish a report that said there will be "no significant impact of flooding". The Rev Robin Charles, vicar of St Michael's Church in Dines Green, and a member of the 300-strong group, took photographs to prove their point.

"The brook was overwhelmed, flooding the A44 and adjacent parkland," he said. "If this kind of flooding happens before any construction starts, Heaven knows what will happen when the watercourses and sewers are faced with up to 4,000 more people on the site."

A spokesman for Spen Hill said: "The flood risk assessment has been assessed by the Environment Agency and they have raised no objections to its contents.

"The final development will maintain the same run-off rate as that for the current greenfield site. To achieve this, special features such as swales, holding tanks, and improved drainage will be included in development and these will form part of the reserved matters applications."

Paul O'Connor, head of Worcester City Council planning, said the swales - open, areas on grassland - will be dotted around the site. There are similar features in Worcester's Warndon Villages.

"When rains falls on the site, be it on the ground or on roofs, swales will ensure that it doesn't just run off straight into the brook, but is absorbed into the site.

"But ultimately," he added, "when it comes to extreme weather and acts of God, there is nothing anyone can do. You can't stop it raining."

Outline permission for the Grove Farm development was approved by Worcester City Council in May. Specific design, sitting and landscaping will be the subject of future applications.