Together with East Devon District Council, we are celebrating government’s recent announcement that Marlcombe, the district’s newest community, has been recommended as one of just 12 new towns across England in the government’s next-generation new towns programme.
The recognition comes in the New Towns Taskforce Report, published on 28 September 2025, which highlights Marlcombe’s potential to unlock economic growth, accelerate housing delivery, and create an environmentally resilient, well-connected community. It follows nearly a year of proactive engagement with the Taskforce since EDDC submitted a response to its Call for Evidence in late 2024.
Located between the A30 and A3052, immediately south of Exeter Airport and close to Exeter and East Devon Enterprise Zone, Marlcombe was recently named following a public vote. It is being planned as a mixed-use, climate-resilient and inclusive town, bringing together ambitious housing delivery, green infrastructure, community facilities and excellent transport links.
Key proposals for Marlcombe, which form part of the East Devon Local Plan review, include:
- 8,000 new homes (rising to 10,000 in the longer term), with a target of 40% affordable housing, delivering homes for local people and helping to tackle the housing crisis, particularly among young people and families.
- Neighbourhoods designed for people with walkable streets, accessible public spaces, and strong integration with the surrounding natural environment, including connections to the Clyst Valley Regional Park, reflecting learning from the NHS England Healthy New Towns programme.
- Essential services and amenities such as schools, health facilities, shops, community hubs, and wastewater treatment, delivered in step with housing, to make sure residents are supported by vital services as they are needed. An appropriate delivery vehicle will be formed to ensure that this happens, and is not left to developers.
- Sustainable transport options, including cycleways, pedestrian routes and public transport connections to encourage people to travel other than by car, alongside road and junction upgrades to make sure traffic can flow. Cranbrook train station nearby will provide additional options for sustainable travel.
- Close links to employment opportunities in the Exeter and East Devon Enterprise Zone, including at Exeter Airport, Skypark, Exeter Science Park, Hill Barton Business Park, and into Exeter.
Being included in the Taskforce’s recommendations means Marlcombe will benefit from additional funding, expertise and national recognition, supporting East Devon District Council in creating a model new town for the 21st century in collaboration with our partners.
Further consultation and engagement with the community and stakeholders over Marlcombe is planned for later this year.
Councillor Todd Olive, Portfolio Holder for Place, Infrastructure & Strategic Planning, East Devon District Council, said: “We are enormously proud that Marlcombe has been selected. This recognition reflects the hard work of the council, our partners, and the community vision that has shaped the project, and is a resounding endorsement of this council’s vision for Marlcombe and its ability to deliver on that vision.
“Marlcombe presents an opportunity to create a strong community, supported by improved infrastructure, drawing on the valuable lessons learned from the development of Cranbrook. It will not just be a collection of houses, but a vibrant, resilient, and well-connected town that champions innovation and sustainability, with a distinct identity and sense of place.
“We are determined to see Marlcombe deliver on its potential to create genuinely affordable homes for local people, helping to address the housing crisis, and are pleased that the Taskforce’s recommendations back this ambitious goal. We are also clear that delivering a well-supported community at Marlcombe will require significant investment in infrastructure, from roads and bus routes to schools and healthcare, and welcome the government’s commitment to working with us and our partners to ensure these are delivered at scale and early in the community’s development.
“We are grateful to our partners for their continued support, and in particular to Homes England for their intensive work over the last few months in helping to refine our vision for Marlcombe. We look forward to continuing to work with them and with our communities to turn this vision into a reality.”
Councillor Paul Arnott, Leader of the Council and Chair of Exeter and East Devon Enterprise Zone, said: “I would like to thank Sir Michael Lyons, who has been leading the New Homes taskforce for the government, for his generous engagement with our officers, Cllr Todd Olive and me. This decision illustrates what is possible when a progressive council and its personally committed members and officers work to the same agenda. My administration has demanded that the governance model for Marlcombe works for the public benefit and does not, as happened historically elsewhere in East Devon, give all the cards to developers.
“I think it is profoundly important in the current overheated political context that credit is given where it is due. I thank the Prime Minister and his team at the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government for their ambition and for enabling their civil servants to deliver this outcome. My administration is Lib Dem-led with Independents and Greens. We have driven the concept of a second new community which arose through the Local Plan review and will now be delivered with the support of Labour in national government. I believe that harmonious cross-party working like this is what the majority of British people want.”
The government has confirmed that a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) will be carried out on all recommended locations before final decisions are made. Draft proposals and the SEA will be published for consultation early next year, with final locations due to be confirmed in Spring 2026 alongside the government’s full response to the Taskforce report.
Acknowledgements
East Devon District Council would like to thank the following organisations for their support in the Marlcombe submission:
- Homes England
- Exeter Science Park
- LiveWest
- Exeter Airport
- Devon County Council
- Exeter City Council
- Mid Devon District Council
- Teignbridge District Council
- Devon and Torbay Combined County Authority
- Ted Wragg Trust
- Exeter College
- Devon Agricultural Association
- National Grid Electricity Distribution (NGED)