Mid Cornwall · TR3 · Cornwall Council Mid
Stithians new builds — a Mid Cornwall studio
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. On a Stithians site, the brief always meets the place — Stithians is a village south of Redruth with the Stithians Reservoir nearby, a Norman church and a Conservation Area covering the village core, with a building stock that leans toward barn conversions and traditional granite cottages.
Stithians sits in Mid Cornwall — just off the A390; covering TR3 from Ponsanooth, Constantine, Mabe Burnthouse outward.
- Conservation Area
- Rural / open-countryside policy area
- ✓Cornwall Council Mid sub-area regulars
- ✓Free first site visit, no obligation
- ✓Conservation Area experience built into the fee
- ✓Measured-survey accuracy from day one
Free · No obligation
Free Stithians feasibility call
Tell us about your new build. We reply within 1 working day — no obligation.
Who this is for
In Stithians 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.
Local watch-list
The TR3 constraints that shape a new build brief.
Watch #1
Conservation Area controls on materials, window proportions and roof form through central Stithians
Watch #2
Local Plan tests on isolated dwellings, plus lane access for plant and deliveries around Stithians
Watch #3
Party Wall notices and shallow roof voids typical of traditional granite cottages in the TR3 district
Local proof — Most Stithians new build clients we work with are second-time builders — they've seen the templated approach fail once already.
Get a free feasibility viewFAQs
Stithians New Builds — local questions answered.
- We live in the house. Can a new build in Stithians 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 Stithians are often easier if you move out for a few weeks. We set that expectation at feasibility stage rather than halfway through.
- Can I build a new house on my plot in Stithians?
- 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. In Stithians specifically, we'd start by checking the Conservation Area boundary before committing to a direction.
- 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.
- 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.
Quick check
Want a straight answer on whether your Stithians 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.
Free · No obligation
Get a free feasibility view
For projects in Stithians and the TR3 area.
Scope
What we can draw, survey and build around Stithians
These stages can be bought separately. Most TR3 projects use three of them.
Building regulation drawings
Full Plans sets with sections, construction notes and coordinated structural information.
Structural coordination
Calculations coordinated with the drawings so building control sees one consistent story.
Planning application drawings
Existing and proposed plans, elevations, site and block plans drawn to validation standard.
Full design and build
One contract from first sketch to handover, with the same team on paper and on site.
Measured survey
An accurate record of what is actually there, which is where most avoidable cost is removed.
Page purpose
Drawings only, or drawings through to handover in Stithians?
Both routes are open on a TR3 project, and the honest answer depends on whether you already have a builder you trust. Plenty of Stithians 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
Keep reading
Follow the chain: survey, drawings, build
We cover Stithians and the wider TR3 district directly. New Builds enquiries here are common enough that we know the constraints before the first visit.
Who this is for
Why this page exists, and who it is for
- Drawings, planning and building regulations are all produced in-house, so a new build 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 Stithians are handled through Cornwall Council, with St Austell 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.
Local context
Why Stithians is its own job.
The planning backdrop in Mid Cornwall is real, not abstract: conservation Area covers the village core. Reservoir SSSI to the south and A39 corridor shape edge-of-village development. For new build specifically, parts of Stithians sit within a designated Conservation Area, which means materials, fenestration and roof pitches all need to read sympathetically with the existing streetscape; 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. Treat the TR3 parish brief as the design brief and the Stithians application has somewhere to land. Whether the project is on barn conversions in the centre or further out toward Ponsanooth, the new build response is locally tuned.
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 Stithians.
01
Off-grid services — package treatment plants, borehole supply, off-mains gas — are common on rural Cornish plots and need designing, not assuming.
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.
Our process
How a Stithians 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 fabric
Choosing a new build team that actually knows TR3.
Building stock
Across Stithians (TR3) we work on traditional granite cottages, Victorian villas, post-war bungalows, modern small estates, barn conversions. Each stock type drives a different new build response — barn conversions in particular needs careful detailing here.
Parish & policy
Stithians is its own town in Mid Cornwall, with planning history that's specific to the TR3 catchment.
Coverage
We cover TR3 from our studio, with regular new build jobs also running in Ponsanooth, Constantine, Mabe Burnthouse. Most Stithians site visits get booked within the same week.
What does a first Stithians consultation cost?
Nothing. We come to the property, walk the site, talk through what works on a TR3 plot and follow up with a written feasibility note inside a week — no obligation either way.
Request a free visitOther services in Stithians
Nearby places we cover
Most Stithians new build enquiries start with one honest conversation about what's actually allowed — and that conversation costs nothing. Applications are dealt with through Cornwall Council, with St Austell the office we deal with most for TR3.
Decide the route after the free Stithians visit Free first visit, TR3 included.
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