®Planning appeal decision
Land Adjacent Upper Spilsby, Exeter Road, Ottery St Mary, EX11 1LE
Planning appeal 3364929 at Land Adjacent Upper Spilsby, Exeter Road, Ottery St Mary, EX11 1LE (East Devon District Council) was allowed on 5 November 2025 by Inspector Kent R, by written representations. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: whether the proposed dwelling would be in a suitable location having regard to the development plan policies concerned with the location of new housing.
Construction of a new dwelling and associated landscaping
- Authority
- East Devon District Council
- Appeal type
- minor · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Written Representations
- Development
- residential · Minor Dwellings
- Inspector
- Kent R
- Postcode
- EX11 1LE
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- whether the proposed dwelling would be in a suitable location having regard to the development plan policies concerned with the location of new housing
- if not, whether the scheme should be treated as an exception, under the provisions of paragraph 84 e) of the Framework relating to designs of exceptional quality
- the effect of the development on the safety of aircraft using Exeter airport with reference to bird strike
- the effect of the development on the East Devon Pebblebed Heaths Special Area of Conservation (SAC) and Special Protection Area (SPA)
What decided it
The exceptional quality of the design, with its energy efficiency and sustainable features, accords with the Framework's exception for isolated homes and provides substantial benefits that outweigh the conflict with the development plan.
The moderate harm caused by conflict with EDLP Strategies 1 and 5B and policy TC2 was outweighed by the substantial benefit of the dwelling's exceptional design quality, energy efficiency and sustainability measures, which accord with the Framework's policy on isolated homes in the countryside.
What the Inspector cited
- Development plan policies
- EDLP Strategy 1EDLP Strategy 5BEDLP policy TC2EDLP policy TC12EDLP Strategy 47
- National Planning Policy Framework
- Paragraph 84Paragraph 218
- Judgments
- Braintree DC v SSCLG, Greyread Ltd & Granville Developments Ltd [2018] EWCA Civ 610; City and Country Bramshill Ltd v SSHLG and others [2021] EWCA Civ 320
How the Inspector dealt with each one is set out in the app, in order: the development plan, national policy, housing land supply, other considerations and the planning balance, beside the letter.
See how each was appliedThe decision letter
Town Planner Pro holds this letter. The Appeals plan opens it and every other letter we hold, all of them searchable, with the main issues and what decided each case picked out. We do not show letters on the free site because they carry people’s names and addresses.
With an account
What an account adds to this decision
More decisions in East Devon
The authority’s record since 2016 · every decision in 2025
- Allowed19 October 202660076221 Jennings Gardens, Tithebarn, Exeter, EX1 4BL
- Dismissed7 October 20266003095Land at Newlands Farm, Land North West of B3165, Axminster, EX13 5SF
- Dismissed13 August 20263369854Land Just South of Hazlehurst, Raymonds Hill, Axminster, Devon, EX13 5UH
- Allowed10 July 20266005764Land North East of Parkfield Cottages, Pink House Corner, Lympstone, EX8 5AH
- Allowed10 July 2026600469610 Marine Parade, Budleigh Salterton, EX9 6NS
The main issues, what decided it, the planning balance and the policies and judgments listed as cited are read from the published letter by Town Planner Pro and are our summary, not the Inspector’s words; the letter itself is the record. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Research, not advice.