District councillor
Cllr Jess Bailey
Strategic Planning Committee member; Councillor for West Hill and Aylesbeare (Independent)
Independent councillor for West Hill and Aylesbeare on East Devon District Council (council records list service since 2019). Listed as a Strategic Planning Committee member in the meeting attendance records.
Where they stand
?Position not clearWas the one named vote against publishing the whole Regulation 19 plan on 4 February 2025, citing missing evidence, and on 22 September 2026 asked for air-quality modelling of removing sites close to the heaths 'such as Exmo 20', without stating a view on the allocation itself.
10 Committee Members voted in support, Councillor Jess Bailey voted against, and Councillor Helen Parr abstained from the vote.Official minutes, SPC 4 February 2025 · minutes (PDF) · play the moment ▶
one we haven't seen all the evidence and I think we should have before we go out to regulation 19Strategic Planning Committee, 4 February 2025 · 01:17:56 ▶ · meeting page · Her stated reason: the committee had not seen all the evidence.
particularly the ones that are closest, such as EXMO20?Strategic Planning Committee, 22 September 2026 · 03:07:42 ▶ · meeting page · Asked for modelling of removing sites near the heaths; a question, not a stated position.
Everything they said about EXMO20 at the meetings
13 passages from the council recordings, in date order. Each time stamp plays the recording at that moment.
Strategic Planning Committee, 20 September 2024 – afternoon session (1)
even though there's no targets for different settlements I think you have you do have to look at things in the round um and I think it's just too much02:13:32 ▶ · I. Admissions (24)
Strategic Planning Committee, 29 October 2024 – afternoon session (2)
I know we say oh well it's coming back and it's going to come back again but the reality is the Local Plan it's like a juggernaut isn't it and once things go in they're pretty much yes they might come out but really they're pretty much in01:34:55 ▶ · I. Admissions (24)
but I appreciate it's uncomfortable we wouldn't be doing this unless we needed to to meet housing requirement figures we have no control over04:52:49 ▶ · The council’s answers (rebuttals) – what officers and councillors said in EXMO20’s defence
Strategic Planning Committee, 4 February 2025 (3)
I am a bit uncomfortable going out to consultation and effectively we're going to be asking the question, do you think it's legally sound and do you object when we haven't actually had all the evidence base come through this committee? Have we? So things like the water cycle study, we should see that in whatever form discuss it as a committee. We haven't had the habitat mitigation document.01:15:20 ▶ · 2. Outstanding pieces of work (HRA, Air Quality Mitigation report, etc.) – especially dates and promises (257)
so those are my two key things one we haven't seen all the evidence and I think we should have before we go out to regulation 1901:17:56 ▶ · 2. Outstanding pieces of work (HRA, Air Quality Mitigation report, etc.) – especially dates and promises (257)
Yeah, I would slightly take odds with them being described as one or two bits and pieces. I don't think they are bits and pieces. And I think if we're going out to the public and saying, this is what we propose, we have to do it with all the backup so that then if anybody wants to challenge us, they've got everything there.01:21:45 ▶ · H. Heritage and other (51)
Strategic Planning Committee, 8 July 2025 (1)
it's not always clear to me in the report whether it's simply concerns that are being raised or whether it's more formally an objection02:10:29 ▶ · G. Consultation and procedure (Regulation 19, AI, objections, generic answers, advice, future decisions) (85)
Strategic Planning Committee, 14 July 2026 (1)
the planning application for I think it was 140 houses at Gerway, that was recommended by officers for approval despite the fact that we know the sewage treatment works at Fluxton are at capacity. That's what our water cycle study tells us and despite the fact there's no evidence of Fluxton being upgraded. So as an authority we were recommending approval of that application with a gramping condition despite there being no evidence of the fact that the sewage treatment work was going to be upgraded.01:50:49 ▶ · D. Deliverability: access, sewage, water, infrastructure, viability (“effective”) (125)
Strategic Planning Committee, 22 September 2026 (3)
Thank you, I'd like to comment on paragraph 3.17 and the explored mitigation options I'm afraid I don't don't think that's actually going to achieve anything uh how's East Devon district council going to uh mitigate I think that's just not realistic … it's not going to mitigate I don't think it's not going to reduce the number of internal combustion engines so I am concerned about the air quality and I don't have any confidence that 317 is going to help I'm afraid.02:31:46 ▶ · A. Habitats Regulations, Pebble Bed Heaths, air quality and ecology (126)
I understand why it's being done, but there are things like the wet heath, the dry heath, the damselfly, which are kind of intrinsic features of the special area of conservation. so I don't quite know how looking at the kind of extremities or the section along the road is going to help with that.03:07:14 ▶ · A. Habitats Regulations, Pebble Bed Heaths, air quality and ecology (126)
could we reduce the overall numbers of housing if we find that we can't mitigate, and would that be one way round? If we aren't able to accommodate the numbers because of the impact on the air quality, will we have modelling showing, for instance, the impact of reducing numbers or removing specific sites? And can we show that specific sites would have a particularly detrimental impact on the air quality of their Pebblebed Heaths, particularly the ones that are closest, such as EXMO20?03:07:42 ▶ · A. Habitats Regulations, Pebble Bed Heaths, air quality and ecology (126)
Full Council, 14 October 2026 (2)
it's very onerous and quite outrageous that East Devon has apparently fallen short by 21 houses being built over three years. not our fault. And yet we as an authority have to therefore have a 20% buffer and grant permission for hundreds more houses.00:51:09 ▶ · I. Admissions (24)
I'm also concerned about the deferral so the decision where where members dare to go against the officer's recommendation then there's subsequently a deferral because if committee feels a particular way it should be possible for those any reasons for refusal to be decided on the day … I don't want to see deferrals and then more pressure put on councillors to refuse applications when there's an officer recommendation for approval. I don't believe that that's a requirement under the government's new rules so I don't think we should be changing it.01:23:03 ▶ · G. Consultation and procedure (Regulation 19, AI, objections, generic answers, advice, future decisions) (85)
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