47,500 New Homes Proposed to Go in Cornwall’s Local Plan

The plan will be put out for comment before being submitted to Government but the evidence is, that unless a figure acceptable to Government is there, Cornwall can have a higher figure imposed on it. If Government reject the plan then that would delay even further Cornwall having a plan (it should have been in place in 2010) and developers will be more likely to build in places local people do not want to see development. The Council will not have a defense against those applications that go to appeal. The plan is what gives Cornwall protection otherwise we only have the National Framework Document which encourages ‘sustainable development’ and has been described as a developers charter.

What does this figure mean for St Just and Pendeen?

• The plan is for the period 2010 to 2030 so places built since 2010 or that have planning permission count towards the total.
• Put simply, we are part of a rural area that surrounds Penzance so there is not a specific figure for St Just and Pendeen.
• In the proposed plan, that rural area has a total figure of 1,000 homes.
• 153 homes have already been built.
• A further 458 homes have planning permission but are not yet built.
• This means that a further 389 homes between now and 2030 would be needed to meet the plan.
• 389 homes (and not all these will be in St Just or Pendeen areas) means an average of 23 homes being given planning permission each year, up to 2030.

What does the number mean for Cornwall?

• 7,000 new homes have been built since 2010.
• A further 20,000 homes already have planning permission granted.
• This leaves 20,500 more homes to be given planning consent before 2030.
• That is 1,205, each year, throughout the whole of Cornwall from 2014 until 2030.

Governments change and more information on population emerges so 2030 is a long way a way and this will only be a target set on the day the plan is agreed. The day after, the rules of the game might change again and Councillors and Local Communities will be sent to debate and argue again!

For more comment, look at my blog.