Battle to preserve way of life in villages

NOSS MAYO AND NEWTON FERRERS ARE 'SPECIAL' PLACES

- KATIE OBORN

TWO picturesque villages near Plymouth have some of the most expensive homes in south-west Devon, but residents fear the places they call home could become the "next Salcombe".

Locals in Noss Mayo and Newton Ferrers say they are determined to keep their villages which are around a 15-minute pothole-ridden drive from the city - 'for locals. This is despite numerous second homes and holiday cottages springing up around them.

Positioned on the Yealm estuary, Noss Mayo is a neighbour to the larger village, Newton Ferrers, which sits on the other side of the water and is accessible by a small ferry.

House prices have risen drastically in both villages in recent years.

One house in Noss Mayo, Mole End, on Pillory Hill, cost its new owners £1.9 million when they bought it in March last year. Number 8 Church Park, in Newton Ferrers, meanwhile, was the next most expensive, at over £1.8 million, with Number 6 Riverside Road, also in Newton Ferrers, following in third place at just under £1.8 million.