Exeter church refused permission for Marsh Barton Building
Exeter's largest church, bursting at the seams, appeals council decision that could leave Marsh Barton building empty and 40 jobs uncreated.
Rediscover Church, currently at Northernhay Street, serves 500 people and has been searching for a permanent home for eight years, but are refused planning permission for a new home in Marsh Barton.
Rediscover Church Exeter has confirmed it will appeal Exeter City Council's decision to refuse planning permission for Signal House, Cofton Road, Marsh Barton (ref: 25/1784/FUL). The proposal would have brought a building into active daily use as a community hub serving both the church and the wider community.
The current occupier is seeking to relocate, and despite twelve months of active marketing, no industrial replacement has come forward.
The proposed development would have transformed the site into a seven-day-a-week facility, including a public café, co-working and meeting space for Marsh Barton businesses, education and training provision, and wider community services, creating more than 40 full-time equivalent jobs at the outset, and filling a real gap in local services as Alphington continues to grow.
Marsh Barton has already evolved in recent years. Alongside traditional industrial uses, there are now leisure and retail businesses operating successfully in the area. The Rediscover Church proposal reflects that shift, bringing a different but complementary form of employment and activity that supports both the business community and local residents.
The application attracted significant public support, with 59 positive comments submitted on the Exeter City Council planning portal. When the proposals were first announced, they also received positive coverage in local media, reflecting the level of interest and goodwill towards the project within the community.
Signal House had been actively marketed for a full twelve-month period and no viable interest has been received from traditional storage, distribution or industrial users. The council nonetheless refused the application on the grounds of employment land protection.
The decision follows more than eight years of searching for a permanent home in Exeter. The church has outgrown its current premises at Northernhay and identified Signal House as a rare opportunity to establish a long-term base serving both the congregation and the city every day of the week.
Mark Pugh, the General Superintendent of Elim and Lead Pastor of Rediscover Church, said: “A building that could serve thousands of people has been prioritised for a use that hasn't materialised in over twelve months. That's not protection, that's stagnation.
"This decision doesn't just affect us. It affects the building owner, the current occupiers who are trying to relocate, the future of our existing site, and ultimately the wider community that loses something that could have made a real difference.
"We are appealing not because we want special treatment, but because we believe this deserves a fair and realistic hearing.
"A café, a place to meet, training opportunities, space for local businesses, that is what this site could become. And Exeter deserves better than empty buildings and missed opportunities.”
The refusal is having real consequences beyond the church itself.
Four separate parties are affected: the building's owner, the existing occupier who is seeking to relocate, Rediscover Church, and the buyer of the church's current Northernhay premises, leaving all four in limbo pending the outcome of the appeal.
Mark Pugh added: “We fully recognise the importance of protecting employment space in Marsh Barton.
“This building attracted no viable interest in twelve months of active marketing. Our proposal would have created real jobs and real daily activity. If no alternative use is permitted, the realistic prospect is that this building stands empty. It would serve neither the employment agenda the council seeks to protect, nor the community that could benefit from our proposal.
"This is bigger than one application and it’s about what kind of city we're becoming. A city that holds tightly to outdated categories, or a city that adapts, innovates and makes the most of what it has. We know which one we're committed to building. We're not going anywhere.”
Rediscover Church is proceeding with its appeal and welcomes continued support from the local community.
