Devon CPRE, the only charity that protects Devon’s countryside from inappropriate development, is holding a special workshop in Tiverton on 20 May to help town and parish councils achieve the best planning outcomes for their local community.
Experienced independent Planning Consultant Jo Widdecombe will guide local councillors through the complexities of the planning process and explain what it’s important for them to know when they respond to applications.
Devon CPRE Director Penny Mills says, “How town and parish councils respond, as consultees in the planning process,...
Devon CPRE, the only charity that protects Devon’s countryside from inappropriate development, is holding a special workshop in Tiverton on 20 May to help town and parish councils achieve the best planning outcomes for their local community.
Experienced independent Planning Consultant Jo Widdecombe will guide local councillors through the complexities of the planning process and explain what it’s important for them to know when they respond to applications.
Admission is free for member organisations (up to three people can attend from each member council) and for non-...
Local environmental charity Devon CPRE is putting its weight behind a Private Member’s Bill to make it compulsory for developers to put solar panels on the rooftops of new build housing, and it’s urging people in the South West to take action to ensure their MP helps get the legislation through Parliament.
MP Max Wilkinson has instigated the New Homes (Solar Generation) Bill, nicknamed the Sunshine Bill, which is scheduled for its second reading next week (Friday, 17 January). As many MPs as possible need to vote YES to make sure it progresses to the next stage.
Devon CPRE, the local branch of the countryside charity CPRE, has taken to the road this summer, encouraging people who care about the future of Devon’s countryside to get involved in its latest campaign and become Devon Defenders.
The charity has taken its rallying cry to three agricultural shows in different parts of the county- Dartmoor’s Chagford Show, the Yealmpton Show in the South Hams and the North Devon show at Umberleigh.
Defend Devon is an overarching campaign by the local charity to protect our county’s unique landscapes from greedy developers and bad planning....
The Devon branch of the countryside charity CPRE is looking for budding young artists who can capture the beauty and variety of the county’s natural landscapes, from its wild moorlands to its sheltered river valleys.
Young artists aged 18 and under have until the end of September to submit a painting, drawing, textile, collage, or mixed media artwork of a Devon view to win the coveted title of Devon’s Best Young Landscape Artist 2023. The landscape could be a favourite beach or beauty spot, a local park or green space, somewhere visited on a day out or even the artist’s back garden...
The Devon branch of the countryside charity is once again on the lookout for award-worthy churchyards across the county. Since Devon CPRE launched its Best Churchyard Competition six years ago, the charity has come across inspiring stories of communities pulling together to make the most of the green spaces around their churches and chapels.
Last year’s winner, All Saints in Kenton, near Exeter, and the runner-up, St Michael the Archangel in Chagford, were both fantastic examples of how local people can transform their churchyard when they draw on their individual strengths in...
Devon CPRE, the Devon branch of the countryside charity, is celebrating after councillors in East Devon voted to refuse permission for a large solar farm on agricultural land at Marsh Green, near Exeter, following a two-hour debate just before Christmas.
The 6:4 decision (with one abstention) came as a welcome surprise to opponents of the scheme, including residents in and around Marsh Green. It followed a site visit by councillors on the morning of the planning meeting (20 December). They found the proposed construction area waterlogged after all the recent rain - a fact that...
Villagers of Marsh Green in East Devon have made an urgent appeal to the Devon branch of the countryside charity CPRE to help them fight an alarming planning application for a solar farm that they fear would destroy hundreds of acres of productive land and increase the risk of their homes flooding.
The application also includes proposals that residents claim would effectively cut off the nearby hamlet of Westcott for five days a week during the construction phase to give heavy goods vehicles easier access. The developers claim construction traffic will use any of three routes,...
Young artists aged 18 and under can now compete for the title of Devon’s Best Young Landscape Artist 2022. Devon CPRE, a South West branch of the countryside charity CPRE, held the competition for the first time last year and was impressed with the quality and quantity of entries from across the county.
The charity is inviting budding young artists to showcase their creativity by capturing Devon’s unique and precious landscapes in the medium of their choice. There are two entry categories - one for teenagers and one for younger children - with cash prizes for the winners....
In a call to arms on behalf of the environment, a small, independent Devon-based charity is taking on the might of international solar farm developers - by legally challenging a council's decision to allow an industrial-scale solar array to be built on 28 fields at Pyworthy in northwest Devon. Devon CPRE is fighting its biggest battle yet to save prime farmland that’s vital for food production and is one of the greatest ‘carbon capture’ resources we possess.
The charity is mounting a High Court challenge along with Pyworthy residents, including the actor John Nettles OBE who...
