Mid Cornwall · PL24
One studio for new build in Biscovey
A bespoke new build is the longest project we do, and the most rewarding. From plot appraisal through planning, building regulations and construction, you work with one team from the first sketch to the handover walk-round. Working in Biscovey means starting from the PL24 context — Biscovey is a town-edge neighbourhood in the PL24 area, where modern housing, larger gardens and edge-of-settlement plots create practical development opportunities, with a building stock that leans toward modern estates and semis.
Biscovey sits in Mid Cornwall — covering PL24 from St Austell, Bugle, St Dennis outward.
- Rural / open-countryside policy area
- ✓ One studio — design, planning and build under one roof
- ✓ Local to Mid Cornwall — not a national franchise
- ✓ Fixed-fee planning packages, no surprise invoices
- ✓ Measured-survey accuracy from day one
Our process
How a Biscovey new build project runs.
Step 1
Plot review
Site visit, planning history check, designation review and an honest feasibility verdict.
Step 2
Concept design
Sketches that test the plot in massing, orientation and approach before any drawings are committed.
Step 3
Planning
Pre-app, full planning, consultee management and condition discharge.
Step 4
Technical design and build prep
Building regs, structural design, services strategy and contractor procurement.
Step 5
Construction and handover
Build delivered under contract administration with regular client reviews.
Most bespoke new builds run eighteen to thirty months from instruction to keys, depending on site, planning route and build complexity.
Local proof — Recent new build enquiries from Biscovey have clustered around modern estates — we know the route through Cornwall Council on these.
Get a free feasibility viewWhat we focus on
New Builds considerations specific to Biscovey.
01
Replacement dwellings have specific volumetric tests — getting the ratio between existing footprint and proposed floor area right is the difference between approval and refusal.
02
Self-build CIL exemption requires the right documentation in the right order; missing a step costs five-figure sums.
03
Cornwall's housing policy increasingly favours principal residence and replacement dwelling schemes over open-market new builds in some parishes.
04
AONB and Heritage Coast designations apply to large stretches of the county; isolated new builds outside settlement boundaries face a much higher policy bar.
Local context
Why Biscovey is its own job.
Two things shape a Biscovey application: parish character and policy. On policy — neighbour amenity, highways, drainage and the transition from built-up edge to countryside are usually the planning pressure points. For new build specifically, 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 Biscovey programme tends to run on time. On modern estates in particular — the kind you'll also find toward Nanpean — the new build brief always has to read the existing fabric first.
Planning note
Cornwall's planning policy on new dwellings is among the most restrictive in England outside Greater London. The first conversation should be a planning conversation, not a design one.
Local watch-list
Biscovey-specific issues we screen on the first visit.
Watch #1
Tighter Local Plan tests on isolated rural dwellings
Biscovey is part of St Austell
Biscovey sits inside the St Austell catchment — we cover both as one new build territory.
See New Builds in St Austell →Local fabric
What sets a Biscovey new build brief apart.
Building stock
Across Biscovey (PL24) we work on modern estates, bungalows, semis, detached houses, infill plots. Each stock type drives a different new build response — modern estates in particular needs careful detailing here.
Parish & policy
Biscovey sits in the parish of Biscovey, which matters for how parish-level consultation lands on a new build application.
Coverage
We cover PL24 from our studio, with regular new build jobs also running in St Austell, Bugle, St Dennis. Most Biscovey site visits get booked within the same week.
Can you handle both planning and build in Biscovey?
Yes — design, planning, building regs and full construction run under one roof. For clients with an existing Biscovey builder we can stop at a tender-ready Full Plans pack instead.
Request a free visitWho this is for
Biscovey runs the full mix — owner-occupier, holiday-let, commercial and the occasional smallholding — so we scope every new build enquiry from the use-class up.
FAQs
Biscovey New Builds — local questions answered.
- How long does the whole project take?
- Allow six to twelve months for design and approvals, then ten to fourteen months on site for a typical four-bedroom new build. Complex sites or long planning routes extend that. In Biscovey specifically, we'd start by checking the latest parish-level planning history before committing to a direction.
- What about utilities, drainage and access?
- All designed and applied for as part of the package — water, electric, off-mains drainage where mains isn't viable, and highways access agreement with Cornwall Council where required.
- What's a replacement dwelling and is mine eligible?
- If a habitable dwelling exists on the plot, you can often replace it — within volumetric and design constraints set by Cornwall's Local Plan. Derelict structures sometimes qualify, sometimes don't, depending on lawful use history.
- How much does a new build cost?
- Realistic budgets in Cornwall start around £2,800 per square metre for a good-quality build and rise quickly with bespoke joinery, large glazing, complex sites and high-spec finishes. We work to your number, not against it.
- Can you handle a self-build for me?
- Yes — from feasibility to handover. Many of our clients start as 'self-builders' on paper, then hand the actual build to us once they realise how much project management it takes.
Other services in Biscovey
Nearby places we cover
If you're balancing ambition against PL24 planning realism, our Biscovey new build work threads that needle without the usual drama.