MASSIVE housebuilding plans which would change the face of Worcester are passing many residents by, according to the city council’s deputy leader.

Coun Roger Knight warned not enough people were having their say on sweeping proposals for thousands of new homes in and around the city over the next 17 years.

His warning places a question mark over the value of previous rounds of consultations on the South Worcestershire Joint Core Strategy.

However, David Hobbs, the senior city planning officer working on the plans, said residents were not the only people being consulted.

“A small response is only an element to support or change the plan but it is weighed against technical evidence,” he said.

The plans affect all of south Worcestershire, with a population of about 275,000, but only about 4,500 regularly contribute to consultations despite Wor-cester City Council’s leaflet drops.

We reported yesterday how a crucial report said there should be no more radical increases on top of the 24,500 new homes already planned for south Worcestershire. The Govern-ment wanted that figure increased by another 5,500.

The complex core strategy document will govern how many homes and business sites will be built together with hospitals, schools and new roads.

Following an earlier planning meeting to discuss sites in the city, Coun Knight told St Peter’s parish councillors: “I’m not being alarmist; this all takes place over 17 years.

“But we need to raise awareness and make sure people raise their concerns.”

He also drew attention to the possibility of infill development of about 3,000 houses between St Peter’s and Whittington.

“People need to be asking about what infrastructure this plan will need.”

Pointing to the scale of the plans, Coun Knight said between 2001 and 2005, the city’s population went up by just 150 per day.

But building plans on the scale being discussed would dwarf that figure.

He said about 4,000 new homes were needed in the city and when including the city’s boundaries, that figure rises to 11,000 new homes.

Your Worcester News has previously reported these figures set by the Government as part of a national bid to solve the country’s housing shortfall.

However, Coun Knight said it still wasn’t clear how the necessary infrastructure, such as miles of roadway and public buildings, would be funded to support the vast development.

Worcester City Council, Wychavon District Council and Malvern Hills District Council are working under the umbrella of the joint core strategy to draw up the plans.

A new round of local public consultation has now begun, with county residents being pressed for their views in a questionnaire being posted to homes in City Life magazine.

l A three-day exhibition of possible Worcester develop- ment sites is being held in the shop unit opposite Cafe Vienna, Friary Walk, CrownGate Centre between 10am and 5pm, on Tuesday October 13; Thursday, October 15, and Saturday October 17. For more details, visit swjcs.org.