A DECISION on controversial plans for a convenience store at land at a popular Kingsteignton pub is now expected in November, it can be confirmed.

The application, submitted by Aspect Developments Ltd, seeks planning permission for a new convenience store on land forming part of the Ten Tors Inn, including an area of car parking and one of the pub’s beer gardens.

The proposal, application reference 26/00175/FUL, has attracted close to 50 objections, including from Kingsteignton Town Council.

The town council has raised concerns about the potential impact of the development on highway safety, residential amenity, biodiversity and accessibility, as well as what it describes as the ‘continued community value of the existing public house’.

District and town councillor Ron Peart has requested that the application be considered by Teignbridge Council’s planning committee.

This means the proposal will be debated and decided publicly by elected councillors rather than being determined by planning officers under delegated powers.

Among the objections submitted are concerns about the potential impact of the proposed store on traffic in the area, while some objectors have also questioned whether another convenience store is needed in Kingsteignton.

However, the planning statement submitted in support of the application says the proposal has come about after the applicant identified an ‘under-provision’ of local-scale retail facilities in the area.

St Austell Brewery, the freeholder of the Ten Tors Inn site, has previously said its focus is on ‘protecting the future of the pub and ensuring it continues to thrive at the heart of the community’.

The planning statement says Kingsteignton has a core commercial area in the southern part of the town, alongside a number of local convenience stores elsewhere.

However, it argues there is currently no store serving the local population in the immediate vicinity of the application site.

‘The settlement of Kingsteignton has a core commercial area in its southern portion, which is then complimented by a number of local convenience stores outside it’, the statement says.

‘However, there is currently no provision to serve the local population within the vicinity of the application site, which is a deficit this application seeks to address’.

Supporters of the scheme say the store would provide greater choice for local customers and create employment opportunities.

A decision had been expected in July, before being push back to September and now, thanks to an Extension of Time (EOT) being agreed between Teignbridge Council and the applicant, to November 30.

To view the associated planning documents in full, and to comment on the application, Teignbridge Council’s planning portal and enter ‘26/00175/FUL’ into the search-box.