Redevelopment plan in the works for Sixways Stadium

Plans have been revealed to redevelop Sixways Stadium as part of efforts to return former Premiership club Worcester Warriors to professional rugby in England.

A planning application has been made to Wychavon District Council by Junction 6 Ltd, a new letting and operating of conference and exhibition centres company established by Chris Holland, owner of the Warriors and Sixways, in February.

The application sets out a mixed-use proposal for Sixways including new/refurbished north and west stands, a hotel, medical/sports rehabilitation/research/office accommodation, multistorey car park, golf driving range with associated leisure and office uses, and a solar farm.

A spokesperson on behalf of Sixways told the Worcester News: “Junction 6 is aware of the application on the Wychavon District Council planning portal that relates to a screening opinion that is required to determine whether it is necessary to undertake a full environmental impact assessment for any planning application. 

“It is no secret that Junction 6 is committed to returning Worcester Warriors to professional rugby and to ensuring that Sixways is the centre of excellence for sport, conferences, and events in the area. 

“To ensure that we do not repeat the mistakes of the past we are reviewing the enabling of development options around the stadium to remove any single point of failure in the future.”

In April, it was revealed that the company which owned the Warriors and Sixways had been placed into a pre-packaged administration process amid ongoing plans to resurrect the team and return elite rugby union to the venue.

In February 2023, the Atlas Worcester Warriors consortium agreed a deal to acquire the club, which was expelled from the Premiership after entering administration in 2022 and has been inactive since then.

Atlas was subsequently named as the new owner in May 2023 in a £2m (€2.4m/$2.68m) deal, but failed to complete a further £1m payment to relaunch the club. Control then passed to Holland, owner of fellow fallen former Premiership club Wasps, when Atlas failed to pay back a £1.5m loan to his company, Loxwood Holdings.

Junction 6 is now the entity controlling the Warriors and Sixways, with the club reportedly targeting entry into the Rugby Football Union’s proposed new Tier 2 competition for the 2025-26 season.