South Cornwall · TR3 · Cornwall Council Central
Bespoke New Builds in Playing Place
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. The Playing Place version of this work has its own character — Playing Place is a residential village south of Truro on the A39, with strong commuter demand and steady infill development pressure, with a building stock that leans toward Edwardian and Victorian cottages on the fringes and small modern estates.
Playing Place sits in South Cornwall — just off the A39; covering TR3 from Truro, Carnon Downs, Kea outward.
- ✓Fixed-fee planning packages, no surprise invoices
- ✓Measured-survey accuracy from day one
- ✓One studio — design, planning and build under one roof
- ✓Local to South Cornwall — not a national franchise
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Free Playing Place feasibility call
Tell us about your new build. We reply within 1 working day — no obligation.
Local watch-list
Local snags worth knowing before drawing a Playing Place new build.
Watch #1
Trussed roofs and shallow foundations in the later TR3 estates, which change the structural strategy
Who this is for
In Playing Place the new build brief is almost always a private homeowner improving a forever home — so we lead with feasibility and long-term value, not show-home rhetoric.
Scope
The parts of the job we can take on in Playing Place
Clients in Playing Place take different slices of this list, and that is deliberate.
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.
Structural coordination
Calculations coordinated with the drawings so building control sees one consistent story.
Full design and build
One contract from first sketch to handover, with the same team on paper and on site.
Who this is for
What we can genuinely back up in Playing Place
- Drawings, planning and building regulations are all produced in-house, so a new build enquiry does not get passed between firms.
- Design and build are offered from the same studio, which means the person answering your Playing Place questions has seen the detail built.
- Applications for Playing Place are handled through Cornwall Council, with Truro the nearest planning office we deal with regularly.
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.
Keep reading
Other work we do around Playing Place
Playing Place is covered from our Truro run. Being a smaller place, the local detail matters more than the headline policy: lane access, neighbour proximity and what the immediate street already looks like.
Page purpose
Drawings only, or drawings through to handover in Playing Place?
Both routes are open on a TR3 project, and the honest answer depends on whether you already have a builder you trust. Plenty of Playing Place clients take the drawings, tender them locally, then come back to us for the build if the numbers do not stack up.
- Route one: feasibility, planning and a tender-ready technical pack
- Route two: the same pack, then the build under one contract
- Either way the survey and feasibility work is identical, so the decision can wait
- Fees quoted per stage against the TR3 scope, not as one opaque figure
Local context
Why Playing Place is its own job.
Outside Conservation Area and AONB. Kea parish operates active input on infill schemes; sewerage capacity has shaped some recent decisions. For new build specifically, Playing Place sits outside the headline designations, which usually gives a slightly more flexible starting point — but parish-level character still matters. So every Playing Place job runs as a TR3-specific piece of work — local policy, local fabric, local builders. Most of our new build work in Playing Place lands on Edwardian and Victorian cottages on the fringes, with detailing that has to nod to the wider Perranwell Station streetscape.
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.
What we focus on
New Builds considerations specific to Playing Place.
01
Cornwall's housing policy increasingly favours principal residence and replacement dwelling schemes over open-market new builds in some parishes.
02
AONB and Heritage Coast designations apply to large stretches of the county; isolated new builds outside settlement boundaries face a much higher policy bar.
03
Self-build CIL exemption requires the right documentation in the right order; missing a step costs five-figure sums.
Quick check
Want a straight answer on whether your Playing Place 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 Playing Place and the TR3 area.
Our process
How a Playing Place 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.
FAQs
Playing Place New Builds — local questions answered.
- 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. In Playing Place specifically, we'd start by checking the latest parish-level planning history before committing to a direction.
- 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.
- 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.
- We live in the house. Can a new build in Playing Place 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 Playing Place are often easier if you move out for a few weeks. We set that expectation at feasibility stage rather than halfway through.
- 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 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.
Playing Place is part of Truro
Playing Place sits inside the Truro catchment — we cover both as one new build territory.
See New Builds in Truro →Local proof — Our South Cornwall workload means a Playing Place new build project never has to wait for an out-of-county team to drive down.
Get a free feasibility viewOther services in Playing Place
Nearby places we cover
A new build in Playing Place stands or falls on how well it reads the street — we treat that as the design brief, not an afterthought. Applications are dealt with through Cornwall Council, with Truro the office we deal with most for TR3.
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