Penwith · TR19
One studio for extension in Paul
Extensions are the bread and butter of Cornish homes — adding the kitchen-diner the original layout never had, the bedroom for a growing family, or the light and views the back of the house should always have had. The way we approach extension in Paul starts with a measured walk-round — Paul is a rural parish in the TR19 area, with farmsteads, lanes and scattered homes defining its built character, with a building stock that leans toward farmhouses and rural cottages.
Paul sits in Penwith — covering TR19 from Newlyn, Truro, St Austell outward.
- Conservation Area
- Cornwall AONB
- Rural / open-countryside policy area
- ✓ Fixed-fee planning packages, no surprise invoices
- ✓ Measured-survey accuracy from day one
- ✓ Plain-English feasibility before any drawings
- ✓ Local to Penwith — not a national franchise
Our process
How a Paul extension project runs.
Step 1
Brief
We meet on site, talk through how you live now and what's missing from the current layout.
Step 2
Design
Two or three sketch directions with rough budgets, then refinement of the chosen route.
Step 3
Approvals
Planning or Cert of Lawfulness, then a full building regs package.
Step 4
Build
Either through your own builder with our drawings, or as a full build by our team.
Step 5
Handover
Snag, certify, hand over the keys to your new space.
Typical single-storey rear extensions run twelve to twenty weeks on site; two-storey and wraparound projects sixteen to thirty weeks.
Local proof — We typically have one or two extension jobs live in the TR19 area at any time, so the local planning officers know our drawings on sight.
Get a free feasibility viewWhat we focus on
Extensions considerations specific to Paul.
01
Wind and sea-spray exposure can drive material choices on west-facing extensions; we detail accordingly.
02
Drainage on older Cornish properties is rarely on a clean modern map; CCTV survey before design is often money well spent.
03
Permitted development for rear extensions runs to four metres on a detached house, three on a semi or terrace — but Article 4 areas remove this in some parishes.
04
Extensions over a certain proportion of the original house trigger full Part L upgrade obligations to the existing building — worth knowing before brief is set.
Local context
Why Paul is its own job.
Two things shape a Paul application: parish character and policy. On policy — open-countryside policy, access lanes, drainage and agricultural building history all need to be addressed before drawings go too far. For extension specifically, parts of Paul sit within a designated Conservation Area, which means materials, fenestration and roof pitches all need to read sympathetically with the existing streetscape; the surrounding landscape falls inside the Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, so massing, height and landscape impact carry extra weight in any planning decision; Cornwall Council's Local Plan applies tighter tests to isolated rural dwellings here, so design rationale and policy fit need to be set out clearly from the outset. Get that local reading right and the rest of the Paul programme tends to run on time. On farmhouses in particular — the kind you'll also find toward Newquay — the extension brief always has to read the existing fabric first.
Planning note
Most extensions in Cornwall are either permitted development or a straightforward householder application — but Conservation Area and AONB sites need a more careful design conversation upfront.
Local watch-list
Paul-specific issues we screen on the first visit.
Watch #1
Conservation Area material and fenestration controls in central Paul
Watch #2
AONB landscape-impact scrutiny on visible elevations
Watch #3
Tighter Local Plan tests on isolated rural dwellings
Paul is part of Newlyn
Paul sits inside the Newlyn catchment — we cover both as one extension territory.
See Extensions in Newlyn →Local fabric
One TR19 studio, one extension job — start to finish.
Building stock
Across Paul (TR19) we work on farmhouses, converted barns, rural cottages, smallholdings, scattered modern homes. Each stock type drives a different extension response — farmhouses in particular needs careful detailing here.
Parish & policy
Paul sits in the parish of Paul, which matters for how parish-level consultation lands on a extension application.
Coverage
We cover TR19 from our studio, with regular extension jobs also running in Newlyn, Truro, St Austell. Most Paul site visits get booked within the same week.
Can you handle both planning and build in Paul?
Yes — design, planning, building regs and full construction run under one roof. For clients with an existing Paul builder we can stop at a tender-ready Full Plans pack instead.
Request a free visitWho this is for
Paul runs the full mix — owner-occupier, holiday-let, commercial and the occasional smallholding — so we scope every extension enquiry from the use-class up.
FAQs
Paul Extensions — local questions answered.
- What about the Party Wall Act?
- If you share a wall with a neighbour or build close to a boundary, the Act applies. We flag it early, recommend a surveyor and keep the programme aligned with the notice period. In Paul specifically, we'd start by checking the Conservation Area boundary before committing to a direction.
- How much does an extension cost in Cornwall?
- Build costs in Cornwall typically run from around £2,200 to £3,200 per square metre for a good-quality single-storey extension, more for kitchen-grade fit-out or complex glazing. We give a realistic budget before drawings start, not after.
- Can you handle the build as well as the design?
- Yes — that's the whole point of the studio. One contract, one point of contact, no finger-pointing between architect and builder when something needs a decision on site.
- How long does the whole process take?
- Allow roughly three months for design and approvals, then twelve to twenty weeks on site for a typical single-storey extension. Wraparounds and two-storey add-ons take longer, mostly through approval and groundworks.
- Do I need planning permission for an extension?
- Often no — single-storey rear extensions, side extensions and modest two-storey additions can sit inside permitted development on a typical detached house. Conservation Areas, AONB and Article 4 zones remove some of those rights, so we always check the address first.
Other services in Paul
Nearby places we cover
The TR19 stretch of Penwith has its own rhythm; our extension work respects it, and Cornwall Council usually responds in kind.