A Devon charity that enables city children to experience the countryside has submitted a planning application to build a new car park to boost road safety on its site.

Farms for City Children has applied to convert a disused tennis court at Nethercott House, Iddesleigh, into an additional car park, citing current parking facilities as problematic and potentially unsafe for visiting children.

In the Design and Access Statement, the applicant wrote: “The children arrive in a single coach and enter Nethercott House via the main entrance. The problem is Nethercott House has a small and restricted parking area which makes on-site parking demand for staff and visitors and the arrival of coaches an increasing challenge. This challenge is exacerbated by the Health and Safety requirements associated with keeping children safe on site, where they generally have free access around the property as part of their experience of the farm that is the centre point of Nethercott House.”

Applicants propose resolving the issue by constructing an additional car park for staff and visitors. The existing car park in front of the main building would then serve coach and delivery vehicles, reducing traffic on the site and providing adequate turning and manoeuvring space for larger vehicles.

The charity has already secured the funds to construct the car park, which would measure 39m long and 15.5m wide, with a three-metre-wide entrance. It would include 23 parking spaces with one EV charging point, some landscaped areas, a short pedestrian walkway at the south-east corner to the main building and a bin store.

In December 2024, the charity’s initial application was declared invalid, and decision-makers advised the charity to put together a pre-application proposal, which was submitted in September 2025. Following a meeting in October 2025, a recommendation for officer support was given.

The written response stated: “The proposed additional car park could be supported subject to appropriate justification and information for the LPA’s Tree Officer being submitted as part of a future application.

“Proposed landscaping and appropriate use of materials is recommended to ensure the development is acceptable in the rural landscape and within the setting of Grade II Listed Nethercott House.”

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The charity Farms for City Children was founded in 1976 by children’s author Michael Morpurgo and his wife to help city children experience rural life. It serves over 3,200 children each year. Nethercott House first welcomed children in January 1976. Today, two additional farms operate in Gloucestershire and Pembrokeshire.