PLANS to open a new primary school in Kingsteignton have been welcomed by the town's mayor.

Cllr Keith Howard was pleased to see the identification of a 1.9 hectare site for a 210 place primary school in Abbrook has remained in the latest draft version of the Local Plan.

He said: 'The town's primary schools are already full to capacity, as is the health centre.

'If there is to be future expansion with more housing, there does need to be another school.

'The perimeter of the town appears to be a logical place although there will be some safety concerns as it is a very busy road.'

With more development of the town – at least 120 homes on the site at Abbrook – demand for school places will rise and the proposed new school will have the potential to expand to offer 420 places.

The draft plan also features plans to provide a defined town centre, focused around the area of the fountain.

Consultants have already been brought in to look into the scheme and a public exhibition was held to gain feedback and ideas from residents.

That feedback is now being considered by the planning consultants and more formal proposals will be drawn up.

Cllr Howard said: 'Feedback to the idea of creating a more definite centre has been positive and it was nice to see the town through the eyes of others who are trained town planners.

'However, a lot of these areas are owned by others, not the town council.

'The way forward seems to be to adopt ideas we want and as applications come in for those sites, we can look at implementing them.'

One of Cllr Howard's main hopes is to open up Oakford Lawn and give it a more prominent and attractive entrance, making it more visible.