Approval granted for community hall after 20 year wait

It will meet the demands of growing village

A North Devon village which has had a new community building on its wishlist for more than 20 years, has secured planning permission for it.

The Landkey Mazzard Hall proposed for the top of the Millennium Green off Harford Way is expected to meet the demands of the growing community of 2,300 people and replace the outdated village hall on Blakes Hill Road.

An application was submitted to North Devon Council for the multi use building which will provide opportunities for local clubs, events and private functions.

Planning officers approved it, subject to conditions, as they said it was in accordance with the local development plan.

The land is owned by the parish council, who submitted the application, and a long-term lease has been secured by Landkey Mazzard Hall Charitable Trust.

The scheme comprises a 481 square metre contemporary village hall and an 82 square metre storage building.

The Mazzard Hall will feature a main hall/events space along with separate meeting rooms, an activity room, a bar and kitchen facilities. The building will be low carbon and there will be between 25 and 30 car parking spaces for visitors.

There was “overwhelmingly” positive feedback about the plans at a public consultation event last year, planning documents say.

The principal of a new community facility on that land had already been established after developers and site owners Devonshire Homes were asked to make a contribution towards it when they secured planning consent for 77 homes in the village a decade ago.

When they built the homes they demolished the farm buildings which formerly occupied the site and left it to the parish council with the intention for it to be used for the community.

Planning documents reveal that the need for a new community building was
identified as a “top priority” for Landkey residents in a village survey as far
back as 2001.

Over the last 50 years, Landkey had grown significantly to become the
“largest rural village in North Devon” and was not supported by an adequate level of communities facilities compared to smaller villages
in North Devon.

The current village hall was unable to meet the demands or capacity of the village or be able to facilitate fully accessible and inclusive activities and events.

The design for the new hall has been changed several times and now features a central courtyard to mitigate noise and activities for neighbouring properties on Harford Way. Restrictions will apply to music events.

Funding is being sought for the construction of the hall.

Landscaping will include 14 trees, along with 455 square metres of wildflower meadow and there will be easy access to and from the centre of the village and surrounding residential areas.