Planning: A new home for 10,000 people will change the face of mid-Cornwall

Every week, hundreds of planning applications come before Cornwall Council’s planning department, trying to get approval for various plans in the Duchy itself, with some relating to Holsworthy being dealt with by Torridge District Council.

These plans can cover a number of different considerations – from permission to replace windows or listed building approval, to large building developments or changing the use of a building, for example from an office to a cafe or flats.

Within this large and often complex system, there are a number of formats in which planning advice and approval can be sought.

These range from full applications where all the details comprising a proposed development or work to a building are submitted, to reference applications where further details have not yet been confirmed, for example a blanket application with aspects reserved for aspect may not confirm the final proposed development, but rather seek permission in principle.

An example of this is one for outline permission for 20 dwellings on land with matters reserved for layout and scale; reserved matters would require additional permission later for their inclusion.

Other types of applications include requests for pre-application advice, where potential developers often send outline proposals to a local authority to ascertain whether or not they are likely to get support before submitting a planning application.

The vast majority of applications are decided by planning officers employed by a local authority with ‘delegated powers’, meaning they do so on behalf of their employer, however some applications are ‘called in’ by local councilors to be discussed at a strategic area. planning committee meeting, meaning the final decision rests with a committee of advisors.

We visited the heart of the Langarth Garden Village project to see how work is progressing on the huge housing development and the new northern access road, writes Lee Trewhela LDRS.

If you’ve driven along the A390 between Truro and the new stretch of the A30, you’ll notice that things are moving at the new Langarth Garden Village – which aims to provide homes for up to 10,000 people over the next 20 to 25 years – but you may not be able to see how fast everything is moving.

Based in a valley, much of the work is hidden from view. The new Northern Access Road (NAR) – which will feed the new ‘city’ and link the A390 and A30 in turn with the Royal Cornwall Hospital and further to Truro – is virtually in place, with the first stage due to open next year. Work is also on pace to create the first phase of homes – around 750 homes – to be delivered at a rate of around 150 homes per year over the next five years.

Cornwall Council’s flagship housing project is massive – but to solve the Duchy’s housing crisis it needs to be replicated elsewhere, which is why the team behind it want to see ten more garden villages like it across the county.

We were joined by Harry Lewis, Project Manager for Treveth Council Development Company (LVG Property Holdings, the main developer of Langarth is a partnership between Treveth Holdings and Cornwall Council), Steve Worthington, Project Manager for Cormac – Highways Wing and the council’s civil engineering, and Cllr Olly Monk, Cornwall Council’s housing portfolio holder, at the building complex.

It is just meters away from the busy Langarth Park and Ride, where most customers will be unaware of the complex mega-development happening around them.

Pointing to a map showing the various phases of construction on 650 acres of land in the valley between Threemilestone and Penstraze, Harry told me that the NAR had started the whole plan. The new 3.4km road, funded to the tune of £47.5m by Homes England, is now virtually in place and adjacent to the A390 – where a new ghost island junction will already be familiar to drivers. The full road, which is fully on budget and on time, should be completed in the summer of 2025.

There are sections where you can already see what it will look like – a single lane road next to bike lanes that are in turn next to pedestrian sidewalks, all of which will sit among an avenue of trees

Of the overall scheme of Langarth Garden Village, Harry said: “The whole CPO (compulsory purchase order) process of clearing up to 650 acres and bringing everyone on the journey with you, including the neighboring landowners – who resist but get to become partners – it is not an easy feat. It’s detailed and common, but I’ve had success. We have good agreements and growing partnerships with our neighboring landlords.”

LVG Property Holdings will go on the market in October to seek expressions of interest from national, regional and local housebuilders to join a consortium, which will be run in a similar way to the Duchy of Cornwall, Nansledan housing scheme , of Newquay.

“We envisage we will be in design next year and start building in 2026, meaning the first homes will be available either at the end of that year or early 2027,” Harry said.

Wearing the housing hat, Olly said: “I think it’s a brilliant opportunity for many housebuilders in Cornwall. We’ll see three or four initial major developers on site producing what we need, but then in future phases as it becomes more viable and we start getting some equity back, you can start to open up to the small, local Cornish builders.

“What I don’t want to see is a uniform design all the way through. They have to design it to a certain standard and quality, but the way the houses look is very much tailored to each individual developer. Everyone will bring their little “je ne sais quoi” to each phase. So when you drive through it, you’re going to see a lot of variety.”

The Tory councilor added: “With Cornwall growing this is a really good scheme but we need more in Cornwall. I’d say by 2050 we’ll need ten more of these at least.”

A new primary school is expected to open in September 2027 and there will be a village center with shops, a business centre, a health center and a bar. The new Truro Sports Hub, which is at the heart of the project, is developing rapidly and with the FA affiliate ground almost finished, ready for Truro City FC to start playing at the new ground in September.

It will not only be Truro City land but also a community building and land. Harry added: “It’s a big thing because it’s going to expand that village centre, which is what we want to do because we want to foster that sense of community first and foremost.

“Because we’re putting in all the infrastructure from day one – the Sports Centre, the design of the village center – we’re making sure there’s an immediate sense of community. Looking at other projects, housing comes first for many of them, with community second. If we can at least try to create this community from the ground up, then we’re onto a winner.”

Of the 4,000 homes, over 1,200 will be affordable, likely to be a 70% social rent and 30% shared ownership split, but it is flexible and could go as high as 50/50. Affordable homes will be dotted throughout the development rather than being built together in one area.

Olly said the garden village has wider ramifications. “The council has worked a lot with Truro and Penwith College to grow a skills center to give young people in Cornwall the opportunity to work in house building and the associated industries that come with a project like this. So kids don’t have to leave Cornwall, they can work here all their lives and earn decent money. It’s like the good old days when you had a job for life as woodcutters, carpenters, plasterers… and they have a workload in front of them.

“Cornwall Council has launched a ‘call for sites’ where we are asking landowners, local developers and land agents to suggest sites that may be available for future development. Under our Local Plan which identifies the population of Cornwall to be somewhere in the region of 630,000 by 2050, you will need to build more of these projects or the inequality in the housing market will grow and grow.

“If we don’t do more of this, we’re going to look like a national park that nobody can afford to live in. I don’t think that’s acceptable for Cornwall.”

Like any large-scale project, Langarth had setbacks and challenges. “One of the main challenges is the context of inflation and the supply chain, but from a lead developer’s point of view, the biggest challenge is getting everyone involved in the whole process and taking everyone on the journey with you, so there’s been a lot of community involvement,” Harry said. “We’ve had a really good job at that over the last couple of years, making sure everyone knows when something’s happening, what’s next on the schedule.

“There are also topographical challenges of working in a valley. You’re looking at a lot of piles, certainly along the NAR.”

Steve, who handles all the day-to-day construction, added: “Earthworks are a major part of this project and probably around ten to 15% of the total cost. There is nothing off-site as far as the basement goes, which I managed. This is the key challenge in construction as well as conservation and ecology.

“The net biodiversity gain is calculated across the entire development, so it is ongoing as it evolves. We have resident ecologists and environmental specialists overseeing everything.” About 48% of the site will be parks and green spaces.

The development will also benefit the local economy. About 90 to 100 people are currently working on site, which is likely to increase to about 150 by the end of the year when the infrastructure process begins.

“Then there is the building of the house and we are creating a data center which will create a huge amount of employment opportunities. There is an energy center with thermal storage and battery – there will be many different types of businesses here,” Harry added.

As we reviewed the huge amount of work involved, Olly said: “It’s amazing how complicated the process is from conception to when we start delivery. People don’t see the work that goes into it.”

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