Mid Cornwall · PL26
One studio for new build in London Apprentice
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. London Apprentice sits in Mid Cornwall, and that geography ends up in the drawings — London Apprentice is a creekside settlement in the PL26 area, with waterside homes, wooded valleys and narrow-lane access shaping the brief, with a building stock that leans toward boat sheds and waterside homes.
London Apprentice sits in Mid Cornwall — covering PL26 from St Austell, Bugle, St Dennis outward.
- Rural / open-countryside policy area
- ✓ Fixed-fee planning packages, no surprise invoices
- ✓ Measured-survey accuracy from day one
- ✓ Free first site visit, no obligation
- ✓ One studio — design, planning and build under one roof
Our process
How a London Apprentice 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 — Most London Apprentice new build clients we work with are second-time builders — they've seen the templated approach fail once already.
Get a free feasibility viewWhat we focus on
New Builds considerations specific to London Apprentice.
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 London Apprentice is its own job.
Two things shape a London Apprentice application: parish character and policy. On policy — creekside ecology, flood risk, trees and views across the water often matter as much as the building form itself. 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 London Apprentice programme tends to run on time. On boat sheds 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
London Apprentice-specific issues we screen on the first visit.
Watch #1
Tighter Local Plan tests on isolated rural dwellings
London Apprentice is part of St Austell
London Apprentice 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 London Apprentice new build brief apart.
Building stock
Across London Apprentice (PL26) we work on creekside cottages, detached houses, boat sheds, converted barns, waterside homes. Each stock type drives a different new build response — boat sheds in particular needs careful detailing here.
Parish & policy
London Apprentice sits in the parish of London Apprentice, which matters for how parish-level consultation lands on a new build application.
Coverage
We cover PL26 from our studio, with regular new build jobs also running in St Austell, Bugle, St Dennis. Most London Apprentice site visits get booked within the same week.
Can you handle both planning and build in London Apprentice?
Yes — design, planning, building regs and full construction run under one roof. For clients with an existing London Apprentice builder we can stop at a tender-ready Full Plans pack instead.
Request a free visitWho this is for
London Apprentice 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
London Apprentice 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 London Apprentice 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.
- Can I build a new house on my plot in Cornwall?
- Sometimes yes, sometimes no — and the honest answer needs a planning policy review of the specific site. Settlement boundary, designations, access and policy on isolated dwellings all weigh in. We give a frank read at first consultation rather than a sales pitch.
- 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 London Apprentice
Nearby places we cover
Every London Apprentice new build we work on is treated as a PL26 job in its own right — local fabric, local policy, local builders.