A MAJOR new redevelopment project will be discussed at an 'important' meeting behind closed doors about affordable housing.

The £150 million Sherriff's Gate Development, with construction already well underway, will be the subject of a meeting in Worcester tomorrow (Tuesday). 

When completed, the development will include hundreds of new apartments, a hotel, gym, multi-storey car park and shops for food and drink as well as a multi-screen cinema.

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Billed as one of the largest mixed-use developments ever to be undertaken in Worcester, the project will create 650 homes.

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The scheme will be discussed at a closed meeting - Worcester City Council Policy and Resources Committee at Worcester Guildhall in the High Street at 7pm.

The first part of the meeting will allow public representations (up to a total of 15 minutes) with each speaker being allocated a maximum of five minutes. However, part two will be held in private for 'discussion and decision.'

There is only one item on the agenda: "To consider a proposal for the acquisition of properties to be let as Affordable Housing.”

A spokesperson for Sherriff’s Gate Developments said ahead of the meeting: "The consequences of this meeting cannot be over-exaggerated, it is of huge significance for Worcester, its residents and particularly for those in dire need of affordable housing.

"The proposal to be discussed would secure the delivery of 392 affordable homes at Sherriff’s Gate, comprising a mix of one and two bed city centre properties, which are the most needed affordable homes in Worcester, and will crucially meet a whole year’s requirement for Worcester City Council in a single agreement."

The current project at Sherriff’s Gate forms part of a major regeneration scheme in Worcester, adjacent to Shrub Hill train station.

A spokesperson added: "The scheme presents Worcester City Council with the opportunity to positively respond and proactively address an issue which is high on the public agenda and costing the council substantial money in temporary housing and hotel accommodation every year."

The proposal responds to the city’s shortage of affordable housing as highlighted in the report by ARK in 2022.

Amongst other things, the ARK report highlighted that the city needed 353 affordable homes per year five years before the report, and this had now increased to 384 per year, which is now 458 due to historic shortfall in supply.

A Sherriff's Gate spokesperson said: "Worcester City Council has been very proactive in seeking to resolve an extreme housing shortage in the city. The Sherriff’s Gate Developments is the only live opportunity that is able to action this shortage immediately."

The Elliott Group has been working on the structure as the main contractor of the residential apartment development within phase one. 

A spokesperson for Worcester City Council declined to comment.

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