DESCENDANTS of the family of King Richard III are one step closer to having his remains returned to York.

The Plantagenet Alliance has received notice from the High Court in London that a judicial review can be brought against the Secretary of State for Justice and the University of Leicester.

The battle to return the body of the last Yorkist king to York has raged since the remains of his skeleton were found under a car park in Leicester last year, and confirmed to be those of the King in February.

Debate has raged since then about whether they should be reinterred in Leicester or York.

In May, about 100 supporters and descendants paraded through York with the banner of King Richard III, demanding the return of his body for burial in the city, and the The Plantagenet Alliance, which includes fifteen of his family’s relatives, applied for the judicial review for his reburial in York.

Sandra Wadley is secretary of The Society of Friends of King Richard III, the York-based organisation whose members include a distant relative of the former king.

Sandra said: “It’s fantastic, I think it’s absolutely marvellous news.

“We always said Richard should come back here. Just because he was found under a car park in Leicester doesn’t mean he should be buried in Leicester.”

No date has been set for the review, which is expected to take one day, as yet, but the Plantagenet Alliance will appear before the judge, Mr Justice Haddon-Cave, on September 23, to set a limit for their costs.