Plans to build 34 new homes in Woodbury have been supported by East Devon District Council planning officers.

The plan is for the homes, 17 of which would be classed as ‘affordable’, to be built on land north of Webbers Caravan Park in Castle Lane.

At a meeting next week, members of the council’s development management committee (DMC) will consider if planning permission for the project should be granted, and in a report for that meeting, planning officers say it should go ahead.

This is despite the scheme being strongly opposed by Woodbury Parish Council, and 93 letters of objection being received from members of the public, including a petition of 95 signatures.

Planning officers say a significant factor in their recommending approval for the scheme is EDDC’s continuing problem of not having a demonstrated five-year land supply, making it harder for it to resist developments in open countryside, which would otherwise have been contrary to planning policy.

Officers also say that Woodbury offers a good range of facilities to support development, and say the fact that 17 of the homes would be affordable is also a plus.

The DMC meeting takes place at the Knowle in Sidmouth on Tuesday at 2pm.