Masterplan work on turning 'pretty' green fields near Honiton into an economic driver for the wider region is now underway.

Councillors on Wednesday night unanimously backed plans to commit up to £20,000 towards the costs of undertaking a masterplan exercise for the Hayne Lane site next to Combe Garden Centre on the outskirts of town.

The costs of the masterplan will be met equally by the council and Combe Estates.

The site is allocated in the existing Local Plan for employment use, with East Devon District Council owning the site to the west of Hayne Lane, Gittisham, close to the Heathpark Industrial Estate, with the adjoining land owned by Combe Estates.

Plans to extend the industrial estate have been 'bubbling away for many years'.

The joint masterplanning exercise will consider the feasibility of undertaking a commercial development on the site, what opportunities are suitable for the site and what constraints need to be overcome.

Alison Hayward, project manager for place, assets and commercialisation, told the cabinet that the masterplan work will include commissioning a number of surveys and studies to identify relevant site issues and provide evidence for the proposed uses.

Consideration will be given to uses that will support the council's agenda to tackle climate change, including a report on the viability of the development and the implications for the respective land owners.

Cllr Susie Bond, whose Buckerell ward the site sits it, said that while it is a visually sensitive site, the extension of the Heathpark Industrial Estate has been bubbling away for many years.

She called for representatives from the parish and town councils to be involved in the development.

Cllr Paul Hayward, the portfolio holder for economy and assets, added: "The input from the parish and town council will be critical as they are the boots on the ground.

"This is a joint project as they need us to get access to the land, and we need them as they have more land than us.

"This has been a long time coming.

"The land is pretty to look at but is doing nothing at the moment, but as an economic driver for East Devon and Honiton, it has huge potential."