A LONG-awaited planning application which could see Worcester City FC return home from exile has finally been submitted.

The application by Worcester City FC Supporter’s Club for the 4,419-capacity all weather stadium on land next to Perdiswell Sports Centre in Bilford Road was officially submitted on Monday, March 16 and is now open for comments.

Although the plans have been in progress for some time, they have been beset by delays, most recently a requirement that a traffic survey is carried out, but this has now been completed and is included in the planning documents on the Worcester City Council website.

The survey by Birmingham JMP Consultants notes the site is well served by public transport and footpaths and, although the application does not include any new parking spaces, the club is currently in negotiations with Perdiswell Primary School in Bilford Road and the Old Elizabethans Cricket Club to be allowed to use some of their parking on match days.

Addressing concerns the stadium would result in traffic delays, the report says: “The site access junction has sufficient spare capacity to ensure queuing will be minimal and would not affect Bilford Road flows,” it said.

“The operation of the stadium will be predominantly on a Saturday afternoon with an occasional evening mid-week game.

“Traffic flows on the surrounding roads will, during these periods, be significantly lower than the above figures.”

It concludes by calling on Worcestershire County Council’s highways department to support the plans.

A statement on the supporters' trust website urged anyone who wanted to help bring the club home to write to the council in support of the application.

“Every single comment made will make a difference and there is no age limit as to who can make a comment, so please take the time to add your voice if you would like to see Worcester City FC return to Worcester and to Perdiswell,” it said.

“Please submit a separate comment for each member of your family and help us by spreading the news to as many local people as possible.”

The statement continued with a range of advice on issues which can be highlighted to support the application but reminded supporters general comments such as “We should be playing in Worcester” will not be taken into account.

“Please note that it is the right of everyone to make a comment whether they are for or against this application, so please make positive comments about our application rather than about people who may be objecting,” it said.

“We cannot emphasise enough how important each comment made will be to the outcome of this application, so please do your bit.”

A range of other documents are available on the Worcester City Council website including an assessment of the likelihood the site could flood, which is ranked as “low”, and the possible disturbance to neighbours of noise during matches, which is said to be “minor”.

The impact of the stadium's lighting is also said to be minimal.

City has been without a home of its own since leaving St George’s Lane – the team’s home for 108 years – in 2013. The ground has since been demolished to make way for 80 new homes.

The news comes during one of the most tumultuous seasons for City in recent memory. At the end of last year the team enjoyed its best FA Cup run in a decade, trouncing League One Coventry 2-1 in the first round and holding Scunthorpe to a 1-1 draw in the second – both away. Although Carl Heeley’s boys were knocked out in the replay, it was only after the longest penalty shoot-out in FA Cup history.

But the team has since struggled to keep up its form and currently sits at 10th in the Vanarama Conference North.

To view or comment on the application visit www.worcester.gov.uk and search for planning application P14M0176.

The deadline for comments is Monday, April 6.