West Cornwall · TR26 · Cornwall Council West
Measured surveys in Carbis Bay, the drawing everything else is built on
Every application, every quote and every construction detail depends on the existing drawings being right. In Carbis Bay that matters more than in a modern estate, because walls have been rebuilt and rendered over generations and rarely measure what the deeds suggest. A survey records the building as it is, which is the only sound basis for designing anything. A measured survey records the building as it stands, not as the original drawings claimed it would be. Every planning drawing, building regulation package and builder's quote we produce sits on one, because a wall that is 60mm out of square on paper becomes a 60mm problem on site. Every Carbis Bay project we take on begins with reading the local context — Carbis Bay is the residential coastal suburb of St Ives, climbing up the cliffs above one of the calmest beaches on the north coast and built largely between 1900 and 1970, with a building stock that leans toward 1960s estate housing and post-war bungalows.
Carbis Bay sits in West Cornwall — just off the A3074; with Truro the closest city; 1 miles from St Ives.
- Cornwall AONB
- Coastal exposure zone
- ✓Room by room measurement including wall thicknesses and levels
- ✓Elevations, sections and a site plan with boundaries and drainage
- ✓Scaled PDF and CAD files issued to you
- ✓Carbis Bay and the wider TR26 area covered from our Cornwall studio
Free · No obligation
Free Carbis Bay feasibility call
Tell us about your measured survey. We reply within 1 working day — no obligation.
Our process
How a Carbis Bay measured survey project runs.
Step 1
Address and scope
You send the address and rough size, we confirm a fixed fee and a date.
Step 2
Site visit
Room by room measurement, elevations, levels, photographs and drainage.
Step 3
Drawing up
The measurements are drawn as existing plans, elevations and sections at scale.
Step 4
Issue and check
You receive PDF and CAD files, and we walk through anything unusual we found.
Step 5
Design or handover
The survey becomes the base drawing for design, or it is yours to take elsewhere.
Surveys range from a single room reconfiguration to a full farmstead with several outbuildings recorded in one visit.
Local proof — Most Carbis Bay measured survey clients we work with are second-time builders — they've seen the templated approach fail once already.
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Related TR26 pages
Carbis Bay works as a hub for us: the same measured survey team covers St Ives and the surrounding TR26 villages, so a site visit here often takes in more than one address.
Who this is for
Our footing in West Cornwall
- Drawings, planning and building regulations are all produced in-house, so a measured survey enquiry does not get passed between firms.
- Designated-area work is routine here, so heritage and landscape statements are produced alongside the drawings rather than outsourced.
- Applications for Carbis Bay are handled through Cornwall Council, with Truro the nearest planning office we deal with regularly.
- Design and build are offered from the same studio, which means the person answering your Carbis Bay questions has seen the detail built.
Planning rules change and every site is different. For the final position on your address, check with Cornwall Council as the local planning authority or the Planning Portal.
Scope
Where our work starts and stops on a TR26 project
These stages can be bought separately. Most TR26 projects use three of them.
Measured survey
An accurate record of what is actually there, which is where most avoidable cost is removed.
Building regulation drawings
Full Plans sets with sections, construction notes and coordinated structural information.
Planning application drawings
Existing and proposed plans, elevations, site and block plans drawn to validation standard.
Construction and technical drawings
1:10 and 1:20 details for the parts of the job builders normally have to guess at.
Page purpose
What you actually get on a Carbis Bay measured survey drawings package
This is a drawings-led service. You are buying a documented, submission-ready set for a TR26 address, not a build contract. For most Carbis Bay householders that means a measured survey, an honest feasibility view, then the drawings the council and your builder both need.
- Measured survey and existing drawings before any proposal is drawn
- A written planning route for the TR26 address, including whether permitted development is realistically available
- Proposed plans, elevations and site plan at the scales the authority expects
- Submission and validation handling, plus responses to officer queries
Quick check
Want a straight answer on whether your Carbis Bay project is worth pursuing?
Send a few details — we'll come back within 1 working day with a plain-English view on planning risk, likely cost band and whether it's a project we'd take on.
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Get a free feasibility view
For projects in Carbis Bay and the TR26 area.
What we focus on
Measured Surveys considerations specific to Carbis Bay.
01
Boundary positions, drainage runs and manhole covers matter as much as the house itself once an extension is proposed.
02
Roof pitches on slate roofs vary along the length of the run, and a survey that misses that produces a dormer or rooflight detail that will not sit flush.
03
Where a neighbouring property is attached, a party wall line has to be recorded accurately before any structural design begins.
04
Cornish stone and cob walls are rarely parallel and often vary in thickness between floors, so wall build-ups have to be measured room by room rather than assumed.
Local context
Why Carbis Bay is its own job.
Cornwall Council's lens on Carbis Bay is consistent: aONB designation covers the whole village; coastal views and cumulative cliffside development are weighed in most applications. Carbis Bay sits inside St Ives parish's principal residence policy area. For measured survey specifically, 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; coastal salt-laden air around Carbis Bay drives detailing choices — fixings, render systems and timber treatments all need to be specified for exposure. That's why we treat every Carbis Bay project as a TR26-area job first — not a generic Cornwall job with a postcode bolted on. The 1960s estate housing that dominate Carbis Bay (and continue out toward St Ives) set the tone for any measured survey scheme here. Exposure is the real design driver near the water: wind-driven rain, salt and driving damp push detailing towards better weathering, sheltered openings and robust fixings. Where an AONB or coastal policy applies, visual impact usually carries more weight than size.
Planning note
Cornwall Council will not validate an application without accurate existing plans and elevations, so the survey is the first thing that gets done, not an optional extra.
Local watch-list
Common Carbis Bay pitfalls we plan around.
Watch #1
AONB ridge-line scrutiny on hillside plots
Watch #2
St Ives Bay long-view protection
Watch #3
Sloped sites driving split-level slab design
Watch #4
Coastal exposure on north-facing facades
Carbis Bay is the hub for these neighbourhoods
We run measured surveys across Carbis Bay and the surrounding TR26 neighbourhoods — same studio, same site team.
- St Ives
TR26
Local fabric
Why a West Cornwall studio is the right fit for Carbis Bay measured survey.
Building stock
Across Carbis Bay (TR26) we work on Edwardian and 1930s detached villas, post-war bungalows, 1960s estate housing, modern coastal architect-designed homes. Each stock type drives a different measured survey response — 1960s estate housing in particular needs careful detailing here.
Parish & policy
Carbis Bay sits in the parish of St Ives, which matters for how parish-level consultation lands on a measured survey application.
Coverage
We cover TR26 from our studio, with regular measured survey jobs also running in St Ives. Most Carbis Bay site visits get booked within the same week.
How quickly can you visit a Carbis Bay site?
Usually within the same week. Carbis Bay (TR26) is on our regular West Cornwall run, alongside St Ives. First visits are free and you'll get an honest feasibility view inside seven days.
Request a free visitRecent work nearby
Glazed seaward elevation we delivered last summer ran solar shading via fixed louvres.
See more recent West Cornwall work →Who this is for
In Carbis Bay the measured survey brief is almost always a private homeowner improving a forever home — so we lead with feasibility and long-term value, not show-home rhetoric.
FAQs
Carbis Bay Measured Surveys — local questions answered.
- What is a measured survey?
- An accurate dimensional record of an existing building, drawn to scale as plans, elevations and sections. It captures wall thicknesses, floor levels, openings and the site around the building.
- How much does a measured survey cost in Carbis Bay?
- It depends on the size of the property, the number of storeys and how irregular the fabric is. We quote a fixed figure once we know the address and rough floor area, and where the survey runs into a full design commission it is usually folded into the package.
- Can I use the survey elsewhere?
- Yes. You receive scaled PDFs and CAD files, and they are yours whether or not we go on to do the design work.
- What do you need access to?
- Every room, plus the loft, any cellar and any outbuilding involved in the proposal. Anything not accessible has to be recorded on the drawing as an assumption, and assumptions are what cause variations later.
- Can I use your survey with another designer or builder?
- Yes. The survey is issued to you as scaled PDF and CAD files and it is yours to use, whether we go on to do the design or not. In Carbis Bay specifically, we'd start by checking AONB landscape sensitivity before committing to a direction.
- How long does the survey take?
- Most domestic properties are measured in half a day to a day on site, with drawn output following shortly afterwards. We tell you the drawing turnaround when we book the visit rather than leaving it open ended.
- We live in the house. Can a measured survey in Carbis Bay be done while we stay put?
- Usually yes for single-storey and rear work, with a temporary kitchen or bathroom arrangement agreed before the start. Whole-house remodels and roof work in Carbis Bay are often easier if you move out for a few weeks. We set that expectation at feasibility stage rather than halfway through.
Other services in Carbis Bay
If you take one thing from this page: in Carbis Bay do not let anyone design from an old estate agent floor plan. It is the cheapest possible saving and the most expensive one to unpick on site.
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