Update from Paul Toby Fernbank – 8 April 2026

We are getting close to 500 signatures – thank you! Now let’s push on to protect our future.

Dear neighbours and fellow Culm Valley residents,

We are getting so close — today we stand at 445 signatures on our petition for infrastructure-first planning. A huge thank you to everyone who has signed and shared so far. Your support is building real momentum across Willand, Halberton, Uffculme, Cullompton and the wider Culm Valley.

Today once we hit 500 sigs I will formally write to our local MP, Rachel Gilmour, attaching a detailed letter setting out our concerns. I will explain that I am not against progress — I work every day in cloud and AI and have always been an early adopter of positive change. Like so many of you, I strongly support building new homes so our sons and daughters can afford a property of their own here in the valley they love.

But it is irrational to allow major developments like the 130-home Silver Street scheme (ref 25/01498/MOUT, resolved 11 March 2026) to race ahead before essential infrastructure is secured. Safe roads and traffic calming, sufficient school and GP places, sustainable drainage and flooding resilience, and genuinely enforceable green spaces with real biodiversity net gain must come first — not as optional promises, but as binding commitments.

With only a narrow judicial review window now remaining, we cannot afford to stay silent. That is why we are also launching crowdfunding tomorrow Thursday 8th April (via crowdjustice.com) to raise an initial £5,000 to engage a specialist planning lawyer and barrister. This funding will allow us to get urgent pre-action legal advice and, because the grounds are strong, prepare a challenge to hold Mid Devon District Council (MDDC) properly to account.

Would you be willing to help fund this important case? Even a small contribution will make a real difference. Every pound raised will go directly toward protecting our village, protecting our roads and services, and protecting the future for our sons and daughters. Full transparency and regular updates will be provided on how the money is spent.

Help us hold MDDC to account.
Protect our village!
Protect our sons and daughters’ future!

If you haven’t signed our petition yet, please share today and help us cross the 500-signature milestone — then let’s surge toward 1,000. Share this update with your neighbours, friends and family across the Culm Valley.

Together we can demand rational, joined-up planning that delivers sustainable growth instead of piecemeal overload.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart,

Paul Toby Fernbank
Willand Resident & Culm Valley Campaign Lead

Petition link: https://c.org/4zYFXmYk6X

Also we have started a 
Private Facebook group: please search ‘Protect Culm Valley – Infrastructure First NO Overdevelopment! ‘