PLANNING permission has been given to put up a totem pole in Peoples Park in Crediton.

Crediton Town Council had applied to erect it in the far northeast corner in the wildlife area near a picnic table.

The 1.5-metre totem pole was made by local youngsters out of individual clay rings in the summer of 2024.

The wildlife area in the park is “a popular site for young people to gather to eat lunch/ socialise, providing a fitting location for a totem pole that was designed and created by the young people of Crediton”, planning documents say.

Now that Mid Devon District Council has given the thumbs-up, the town council has three years to start installing it.

Approving the application, the district council said the totem pole would “be of a sympathetic design, not detracting from the natural surroundings and not prevent use of the open space for sports/ recreation”.

The local authority added it would “not have a detrimental impact on the significance of the [Crediton] Conservation Area”, and that its height would be below fence lines and therefore not visible from neighbouring gardens.

One member of the public commented on the application.

Keith Mortimer said: “I can't help thinking that the totem pole would be better sited further into the park in order to minimise any disturbance to the residents in Okefield Road. Perhaps level with the northern boundary of Ashridge.”

But Mid Devon District Council disagreed, saying: “Whilst a member of the public has queried the position of the totem pole within the park given the proximity to neighbouring properties, the single-storey scale (1.5-metre high) of the pole and position within an area adjacent to a picnic bench off a footpath is not considered to result in a significant adverse impact on amenity of neighbouring residents.”

Summing up, the council said the proposal showed “a clear understanding of the characteristics of the site, its wider context and the surrounding area”, and that it would “have an acceptable impact on the landscape character and environmental amenity”.

“Additionally, the proposed development would not have an unacceptably adverse effect on the privacy and amenity of neighbouring properties,” the local authority said.

You can see the application on Mid Devon District Council’s website under reference 25/01038/FULL.

To see more public notices and planning applications, visit: publicnoticeportal.uk.