AN 11th hour appeal to Ashburton Town Council to give up the site earmarked for affordable housing fell on deaf ears on Tuesday.

Ashburton's Affordable Housing Group, chaired by Cllr Michael Posner, has been in discussion with Hastoe Housing Group for months to build 36 affordable housing units at Longstone Cross, a site originally reserved by Devon County Council for a replacement primary school.

It expects to have outline planning permission by the end of the month.

At Tuesday's council meeting, Ashburton primary head Rachel Shaw asked the council to support their campaign to put a new school there instead, suggesting that the housing could go where the primary school currently is.