Lizard Peninsula · TR12
Bespoke New Builds in St Keverne
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. In St Keverne, that work is shaped by the place itself — St Keverne is the inland market village of the eastern Lizard, with a substantial fifteenth-century church, a wide village square and an AONB-protected agricultural hinterland, with a building stock that leans toward traditional cob-and-granite cottages and Georgian and Victorian villas.
- Conservation Area
- Cornwall AONB
- Rural / open-countryside policy area
Local context
Why St Keverne is its own job.
Conservation Area covers the square and church; AONB across the parish. Active parish council with detailed input on village-edge proposals. For new build specifically, parts of St Keverne 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. That's why we treat every St Keverne project as a TR12-area job first — not a generic Cornwall job with a postcode bolted on.
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 St Keverne.
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.
Our process
How a St Keverne 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
St Keverne New Builds — common questions.
- 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. In St Keverne specifically, we'd start by checking the Conservation Area boundary before committing to a direction.
- 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.
- 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.
Other services in St Keverne
Nearby places we cover