A PLAN to build 120 homes on the edge of the city has taken another step forward.

The plan by Vistry Partnerships and Stonewater will see 120 affordable homes built on the land known as University Park off Bromyard Road in Worcester.

The ‘reserved matters’ application submitted to Worcester City Council deals with the layout and design of the development and comes after permission to build homes on the land was given in principle by the council in 2020.

The estate will include a mix of two-to-four-bed homes and will be available through shared ownership, affordable rent, rent to buy and social rent.

A new children’s play area and community orchard and sections of green space would also be built to serve the new homes.

A statement included with the application said: “The proposed layout reflects the neighbouring context, landscape and the local area.

“The proposals integrate the development into the existing landscape whilst also reflecting the urban fabric of the are in relation to height and scale.

“The proposals also include a community orchard to the east of the site offering a welcome green space along with screening of the site from University Park Drive.”

The University of Worcester had its initial plan to build housing on the site approved by Worcester City Council in 2020 ending its decade-long ambition to build a £100 million science, health and enterprise hub.

The university bought the 27-acre site from Tesco in 2009 with the goal of transforming it into the 2,000-job creating hub but the plans never came to fruition after failing to attract enough interest from business partners.

Bloor Homes has permission to build up to 175 homes and Malvern Hills District Council, whose administrative boundary borders the site, gave permission to Spenhill Developments in June 2018 to build up to 150 homes on land known as Grove Park, which is also owned by Bloor Homes.

You can still have your say on the design and layout of the proposal, which can be viewed via the planning section of Worcester City Council’s website.

The application number is 22/00037/RM and public consultation ends on April 13.