PLANS for an underground shop, post office and café in Exbourne were granted planning approval by West Devon Borough Council last week. An earlier application to build a shop cut into the roadside bank at the junction of Stowe Lane and High Street was refused on design grounds. However, planning officers felt the proposed design in the revised plan was ?original and imaginative? and the simple, single-storey, partially underground building would ?safeguard the character and appearance of the conservation area?. The officer?s recommendation was for the committee to delegate to the borough planning officer to grant the application, subject to conditions including protection of adjoining trees during construction and limitation of use to a village shop and post office. Members of the planning committee meeting in Tavistock supported the recommendation. ?We are delighted with this decision? said Chris Hariades, chairman of the Exbourne and Jacobstowe Community Association, which was formed to raise funds and develop the scheme. ?There is still a lot of hard work required to raise the necessary funds to implement the project, but obtaining planning consent is a major milestone for us and gives renewed vigour to our efforts.? He said the proposed building had been carefully designed to minimise its environmental impact and would incorporate a geothermal heating system to help minimise running costs. The project will operate as a not-for-profit community enterprise, providing benefits to the community extending far beyond the provision of basic goods and post office services. Sally Hordern, secretary and a founder member of the association, said: ?The new shop will become a hub for the village, providing a much needed meeting place and information point in the heart of the community. ?It will be especially important to excluded groups, particularly the elderly, young and others without their own transport. ?A further aim of the project is to promote and stock a wide range of quality local produce and crafts helping to support and revitalise the local economy.? The former village shop in Exbourne has closed and permission has now been granted to convert it into a dwelling. A temporary shop and post office is currently being run in the village hall. Policy R5 of the Local Plan provides a support of new village shops, and while this site lies outside the village settlement boundary, planners felt this facility would be well related to settlement, as this was a ?community project to serve the local community?.