Scheme to build a new care home in the city should be rejected says planners

Council planners have said a controversial scheme to build a new care home in the city should be rejected.

The plan to build a 61-bed care home on land off the busy London Road in Worcester goes before councillors for a decision next week with a recommendation from planning officers that it is turned down.

A decision should have been made by Worcester City Council’s planning committee in February but the item was withdrawn from the agenda at the last minute.

More than 30 objections were lodged with Worcester City Council during public consultation bemoaning the traffic chaos the new care home would cause on the already congested London Road.

Neighbours said the wildlife-filled green space would be destroyed if the care home is allowed to be built.

A report, which will be discussed by the council’s planning committee a meeting in the Guildhall next Thursday, said the care home breached a number of its policies on protecting green space.

Planners said the care home would ruin most of the green space, result in a number of trees being cut down and would harm wildlife if it was allowed to be built.

Conservation officers also objected to the plan “in the strongest possible terms” saying the care home “could [not] in any way be considered as preserving or enhancing the character or appearance of the Lark Hill conservation area.”

“The proposal is considered unacceptable as it would intrude into and have a harmful impact upon the green space,” the report said.

“The development would also fail to preserve or enhance the character and appearance of the Lark Hill conservation area and would have an adverse impact upon the setting of the adjacent grade II listed Heron Lodge.”

Officers also said the care home’s parking was not up to standard and would result in cars being parked in surrounding – and already congested – streets.

“It is considered that the proposed development would result in a reasonably significant shortfall of parking, leading to parking on the access road to the site and the surrounding residential streets, for example, Lark Hill Road,” the report said.

“Given the parking pressure on the surrounding roads, this would result in danger and inconvenience to other highway users.”