Mid Cornwall · TR3
Bespoke New Builds in Threemilestone
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 Threemilestone, that work is shaped by the place itself — Threemilestone is the western residential and retail-park suburb of Truro, with the West Cornwall Hospital site nearby and significant new estate development on the Langarth Garden Village land, with a building stock that leans toward 1970s and 1980s estates and modern Persimmon, Bellway and Wainhomes estates.
Local context
Why Threemilestone is its own job.
Outside Conservation Area and AONB. Langarth Garden Village (3,500+ homes) is reshaping the west of Truro with strict design code expectations on adjacent sites. For new build specifically, Threemilestone sits outside the headline designations, which usually gives a slightly more flexible starting point — but parish-level character still matters. That's why we treat every Threemilestone project as a TR3-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 Threemilestone.
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 Threemilestone 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
Threemilestone 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 Threemilestone specifically, we'd start by checking the latest parish-level planning history 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.
- 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 Threemilestone
Nearby places we cover