THE founder of a Worcester technology company has said the firm could be forced out of the city if plans for a new headquarters in Warndon Villages are refused.

GTech, which is based at a site in Spetchley just to the east of the city, has lodged a planning application for a new headquarters off the junction of Berkeley Way and Parsonage Way.

But the firm’s founder and chief executive Nick Grey has said if the plans are not given the go-ahead by Worcester City Council’s planning department the company would have no choice but to move further afield, taking both jobs and investment away from the area.

“I want to stay here but I’m running out of options,” he said.

“Keeping this company in Worcester is difficult and there are any number of grants for working in the Black Country or Coventry.

“We’ve probably been looking for a new home for the past two years – we just can’t do from here any more.”

The company – which manufactures cordless cleaners and power tools – has enjoyed continuing success since it was founded in 2002, and last month was handed a Queen’s Award for Innovation, the highest business accolade in the UK. But with this the firm’s current headquarters at Cupola Court has become increasingly cramped and unsuitable, with many staff working from portable cabins.

Mr Grey said he was aware his employee’s working conditions were not ideal and was keen to give them the best possible working environment.

“A team of designers need to feel quite inspired and I think if we want to keep inspiring them it’s time to find them somewhere nice to work,” he said.

“They’ve all come to work for me and I’ve stuck them in portacabins saying I’m going to find them somewhere else.

“People will work in portacabins but they do need somewhere to eat their lunch.”

The application has prompted serious concerns among residents in the Warndon Villages area, with many saying it would damage the environment of the area as well as raising concerns around noise and the impact on the nearby 900-year-old St Nicholas Church.

But Mr Grey said, if the development was granted, it would not be visible from the church and the majority of the site would remain as green land, especially since a planned warehouse was removed from the plans.

“Sooner or later that site is going to get developed and there’s an opportunity to put something nice there,” he said. “A site that looks, feels and sounds more like a garden than an office would be my aim.

“I wouldn’t want to build something here that I wouldn’t build on my own doorstep.

“But if we can’t get it here we are going to have to abandon it and we would certainly lose some staff if we move away from Worcester.”

He added anyone who wanted to get a close look at the plans was invited to get in touch by emailing support@gtech.co.uk.

To view the planning application visit worcester.gov.uk and search for application P15P0013. It is not yet known when the application will be decided.