Memo to Rt Hon Michael Gove MP, Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities:
At 13.8% over ten years East Devon has the highest growth for any local authority in Devon, Cornwall, Somerset, or Dorset and second only to Trowbridge in the South West Region which also includes Gloucester and Wiltshire.
It is higher than the population growth of the cities of Bristol (10.3%), Exeter (11.1%) or Plymouth with a paltry (3.2%).
It is more than twice the average for England and Wales, at 6.3%.
This is also well above the average of 8.3% increase from 2011 for the East of England, the region with the highest population growth.
Why did our local Tories do this?
Obviously a few landowners have made a killing, but our district has become more congested. We have lost valuable grade 1 agricultural land. We have lost hospitals and hospital beds.
Where are the benefits? What has a grateful government done to support us?
Has this provided affordable houses for local people?
Surely we have “done our bit” – Owl
For details and interactive map see this ONS site.
East Devon Watch 
Being personally mathematically challenged, so requiring Owl’s wise competence on this subject, can an intelligent watchful eye be cast over the housing percentage increase, over this ten year Census period, (which currently continues to escalate) in the rural village of Clyst St Mary?
Calculations should take into consideration the 80 new homes built on the Greenspires estate, plus the smaller Clearwater residential area, numerous barn conversions, individual new housing development plots, which will be exacerbated by the more recently approved, 38 x Burrington homes on a green field, together with a further pending reserved matters decision on the unwelcome and inappropriate proposals at Winslade Park for 40 x 4.5- storey flats, encroaching on a woodland and existing residents’ homes).
This village is surely ‘a case in point’ that build, build, build certainly appears rife in this small community, irrespective of the existing lack of improved infrastructure plans (including safe pavements, lighting and over-capacity drainage systems) and perhaps a further memo to East Devon District Council Planners could be sent that Enough is Enough?
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On a lighter note. We have more people aged 90 plus!
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In fact the highest proportion!
Across England and Wales, the local authorities with the highest percentages of the population aged 65 years and over were North Norfolk (33.4%) and Rother (32.4%). East Devon had the highest percentage of the population aged 90 years and over (1.9%), followed by Rother (1.8%).
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