Hi supporters, I hope you’re all well.

I Just wanted to share our Infrastructure BEFORE Bricks campaign update. We’re not against homes — we’re against building them without the roads, GP capacity, drainage and school places to support them.

MDDC planning committee approved the framework back in March 2026. Since then, the developer has been behind closed doors trying to finalize the Section 106 legal agreement. Standard council policy gives developers a 3 to 6 month target window to sign this paperwork. We are right in the middle of that critical window right now. Once that document is signed and the final Decision Notice is issued, the developer wins the legal right to build.

Two weeks ago, I wrote to the Council demanding a Grampian Condition. This is a legally binding "negative condition". It states: “No development shall commence until specific infrastructure upgrades are fully completed.”

If the council ignores us, the developer will plug 130 more homes into our failing utilities by right. Here is our enhanced, ranked TOP 10 CAMPAIGN MATTERS we are campaigning for:

⚖️ 1. PROCEDURAL FAIRNESS & GRAMPIAN REQUIREMENT
The Planning Inspectorate ruled in 2017 (Ref: 16/01811/MOUT) that rapid growth here destroys our village. Salami-slicing this land into Rowan Lea, Fox Mill Gardens, and now these 130 homes bypasses that ruling. A Grampian condition is our legal right to force utility upgrades before a single brick is laid!

🚗 2. HIGHWAY SAFETY & SINGLE ACCESS RISK
Funneling 130 extra homes through a single access point onto the heavily congested B3181 is a severe hazard. The B3181 serves as the primary strategic M5 diversion route. We must legally demand a full roundabout upgrade via the S106 before heavy construction vehicles arrive.

🦠 3. SEWAGE PUMPING STATION CAPACITY AT CRITICAL BREAKING POINT
Our local sewage network relies entirely on a single, heavily strained pumping station pushing waste toward Cullompton. Forcing another 130 toilets into this bottleneck creates a severe, immediate environmental spill risk for the parish.

🏥 4. NHS SURGERIES STRUGGLING AT 43% OVER CAPACITY
Local GP surgeries in Cullompton are operating at an estimated 43% over safe capacity limits. The local Liberal Democrats have explicitly declared a stance of "no new bricks before correct NHS provision." The S106 must legally enforce healthcare funding triggers.

💨 5. AIR QUALITY VIOLATIONS & INDUSTRIAL ODOUR NUISANCE
The site sits directly adjacent to the M5 motorway corridor and two statutory odour nuisances—the 2 Sisters chicken plant and the local tan yard. Forcing residential units here directly violates MDDC’s own Air Quality Supplementary Planning Document (SPD).

🌊 6. MARSHLAND FLOOD RISK & SURFACE WATER RUNOFF
The application site features heavily marshy agricultural land. Concrete and tarmac will prevent natural absorption, creating severe rainwater runoff. Drainage and attenuation infrastructure must be fully built out prior to building construction.

💧 7. DRINKING WATER GRID CAPACITY & PLUMMETING PRESSURE
Our drinking water network, supplied by the Tiverton unit, is severely throttled. Residents face poor pressure and active hosepipe bans. Tapping a massive new development into a failing supply line without structural network reinforcement is completely reckless.

🔌 8. ELECTRICITY GRID STABILITY & RECURRING POWER CUTS
Willand has experienced multiple unexplained local power outages. The local electrical grid infrastructure is maxed out. We must have a Grampian lock ensuring National Grid network reinforcement happens before the site links up.

🚜 9. PERMANENT DESTRUCTION OF THE RURAL BUFFER ZONE
This active agricultural field currently supports livestock and functions as the last green lung keeping Willand distinct. Losing it erases the critical rural gap that stops Willand from being swallowed by Cullompton's urban expansion.

🏡 10. THE UNBALANCING OF VILLAGE SOCIAL COHESION
Willand is a village, not a town, yet it holds the fourth-largest population in Mid Devon despite having one of the smallest geographical areas. This density completely undermines our social cohesion and stretches village resources past breaking point. 

WHAT WE NEED FROM YOU RIGHT NOW:

We want infrastructure before bricks! 🛠️🚫🧱

We've made great, steady progress but we have an all-or-nothing deadline so we now need to lower the target to make sure we hit it and secure the funds in time.

We are now lowering the initial target to £600. Your generous donation will be sent to the firm when we hit our new target. (If you would like to cancel your original pledge as it was originally based on a £5k target, please contact [email protected] within 3 days).

We still need your help to get up to the new target please! 

Could you take two minutes to share on social media? and maybe email a friend with the link to the CrowdJustice page?" and or our petition link below. 

👉 130 Silver Street Petition: https://c.org/CNTvc9vwJq
👉 170 Halfway House Petition: https://www.change.org/halfwayHouse170Willand
👉 Crowd funder: https://www.crowdjustice.com/case/protectwilland/

A simple share helps massively.

'Together we can do more!'

Many thanks

Toby

#InfrastructureBeforeBricks #GrampianCondition #ProtectWilland #MidDevon #SouthWestWater #NationalGrid

A massive thank you to all our brilliant original! Thanks to your incredible support, our petition against the 130 Silver Street development has now surged past 760 signatures. 

The community voice is clear: we want to protect Willand.

To ensure we secure our funds before our strict, all-or-nothing deadline, we are lowering our initial CrowdJustice target to £1,000. 

Your generous pledge will only be sent to our legal firm once we hit this new target. (Note: If you need to cancel your pledge due to this change, please contact [email protected] within 3 days).

It is pay day, and we need a final push to turn our 750+ petition signatures into active legal backing. If everyone who signed chips in just £5 today, we will smash our goal.

How you can help right now:

• Pass it on: Will you take two minutes to email 5 friends or share our link on social media?
• Spare £5: If you haven't pledged yet, please consider a small payday donation to get us over the line.

👉Crowd funding:

https://www.crowdjustice.com/case/protectwilland/

Let’s keep fighting for Willand!

#infrastructureBeforeBricks 

We've made great, steady progress but we have an all-or-nothing deadline so we now need to lower the target to make sure we hit it and secure the funds in time.

We are now lowering the initial target to £2k. Your generous donation will be sent to the firm when we hit our new target. (If you would like to cancel your original pledge as it was originally based on a £5k target, please contact [email protected] within 3 days).

We still need your help to get up to the new target please! 

Could you take two minutes to share on social media? and maybe email five friends with the link to the CrowdJustice page?"

'Together we can do more!'

Many thanks

Toby

Hi 👋 everyone,

Great news – our crowdfunding campaign on the Justice site is now officially open!

We have reached 488 signatures on the petition and are so close to our first target of 500 – thank you to every single person who has signed and shared. Your support is building real momentum across the Culm Valley.

In the last 24 hours I have instructed a specialist solicitor to review our case over the weekend, with legal feedback expected early next week. We now urgently need your help to fund this initial legal work.

Why this matters: It is irrational for Mid Devon District Council to approve the 130-home Silver Street development (ref 25/01498/MOUT, resolved 11 March 2026) without first securing proper infrastructure. We fully support new homes so our sons and daughters can afford to stay in the valley we love — but not at the cost of overloaded roads, strained schools and GPs, inadequate drainage, and green spaces that remain empty promises.

The six-week judicial review window closes on Wednesday 22 April 2026 — the clock is ticking fast. 

We are crowdfunding an initial £5,000 to cover urgent solicitor and barrister advice so we can properly assess the case and, if the grounds are strong, challenge the decision in the High Court.

Every donation counts. Whether £5, £10 or more, your contribution will directly help us hold MDDC to account and fight for rational, infrastructure-first planning.

Take a stand and let your voice be heard.

Protect our village and community!

Protect our sons and daughters’ future!

Help us make a positive, lasting change for the Culm Valley.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart — your support really does count.

Paul Toby Fernbank

Willand Resident & Culm Valley Campaign Lead

Links:

• Crowdfunding: https://www.crowdjustice.com/case/protectwilland/

• Petition: https://c.org/gdMCZPFyRw – help us hit 500 then push to 1,000!

• Private Facebook group: Protect Culm Valley – Infrastructure First (for updates and coordination)