Brand new Worcestershire town name revealed as website details plans for area
A new website has launched revealing more details about plans to build a major new town around Worcestershire Parkway Railway Station.
It also confirms the official name of the community: Wychavon, which, to avoid confusion with the existing district and district council, will initially be known as Wychavon Town.
The site includes new CGI visuals that show how the town centre and surrounding neighbourhoods could look in the years ahead.
The development will deliver 10,000 high quality, energy efficient homes, with 5,000 of them due to be built by 2041.
The plan includes a new town centre offering retail, leisure and business space, four parks, primary schools in each neighbourhood, up to two secondary schools, a sports hub with pitches, a GP and healthcare centre, flexible community spaces and 50 hectares of employment land.
Designers say the neighbourhoods will be attractive, tree-lined, low-traffic and accessible. Sustainable travel sits at the heart of the masterplan, with the goal of keeping key services within a 10- to 15-minute walk of every home.
A wide network of active travel routes will support this approach. At least 40 per cent of the town will be green and blue spaces, inspired by the area’s historic landscape.
A key commitment is to make Wychavon Town infrastructure-led. Roads, schools, shops, community buildings and other essential facilities are intended to be delivered alongside the homes, not afterwards.
Wychavon District Council officers are preparing an infrastructure planning application for submission by December 2026. If approved, it will unlock funding to put major infrastructure in place before large-scale construction begins.
Guidance for developers, set out in a new Supplementary Planning Document, is due to go out for consultation in January. Residents will be invited to share their views. More information and a sign-up link for the project newsletter are available on the new website, wychavontown.co.uk.
Councillor Emma Kearsey, Wychavon’s executive board member for planning, infrastructure and urban design, said the name Wychavon was chosen to protect a shared identity built over decades.
She said: “Calling the town Wychavon will ensure the shared identity, heritage and strong sense of community that defines our district will be preserved for future generations.
“The launch of the new website means, for the first time, people can see what Wychavon Town will look like and explore our vision in detail.
"It will also be a vital tool to help keep existing communities updated and a way to continuously engage with the council as the town develops over time.
“Wychavon Town being infrastructure-led means we’re putting responsibility and long-term thinking at the heart of this project.
"The Infrastructure Planning Application we’re preparing is a critical step in ensuring the schools, transport links, health facilities and community buildings are in place to support development as they are needed and not following on afterwards, or as we see in some places, never at all.”
Since Wychavon district was created in 1974, residents have shaped a shared identity spanning rural Evesham and Pershore and the industrial heritage of Droitwich Spa.
Covering 1,134 hectares, Wychavon Town aims to set a national benchmark for new town development and promises 10,000 low carbon homes, walkable neighbourhoods, strong access to green space and essential services, and a design focused on community life and low-carbon living.
