A PLAN to build more than 40 homes on the edge of the city has been revealed.

Housing developer St Philips Homes wants to build 41 homes at Henwick Mill House, off Martley Road, on the edge of Worcester.

Lower Broadheath Parish Council has come out against the plan saying the land, which is next to Laugherne Brook and is currently home to civil engineers Enviromontel, regularly floods and could be contaminated.

In an objection to Malvern Hills District Council, parish councillors said: “There was concern that the site was severely contaminated and that there were also extensive archaeological remains.

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“The site was not included in the original South Worcestershire Development Plan (SWDP) and is not included in the current SWDP revision.

“The area is subject to flooding and the access would pose a serious safety hazard.”

The mix of one-to-four-bed homes including nine flats would be built to the west of the city just north of land earmarked for more than 2,000 new homes as part of the Worcester West Urban Extension towards Lower Broadheath.

Worcestershire Regulatory Services (WRS) said the history of the land, which was previously an industrial site, and the historic tip nearby said that contamination could be a “significant issue” but the “degree and extent of contamination is currently unknown.”

WRS said the land must be properly investigated and protected with any dangerous material removed before any bricks are laid down.

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A planning statement included with the application admits that some of the land sits within areas that are at a greater risk of flooding but maintains that the homes would be built in ‘flood zone one’ which the Environment Agency says has a one in 1,000 chance of flooding each year.

Another investigation into land contamination found “no reason why the site could not be safely redeveloped for residential use” according to the developer.

A plan for 42 homes on the site was approved by Malvern Hills District Council in 2014 but expired when no work was carried out.

You can have your say on the plan by visiting Malvern Hills District Council’s website.

The application number is M/22/01884/FUL and consultation ends on March 9.