Lay My Hat

Hi All, this is my first post on what looks like a great forum.

We have recently bought a house in Cornwall and we have an outbuilding in poor repair that we were hoping to turn into an annexe for holiday lets. A couple of local architects were quite encouraging and suggested there would not be a problem, but since we engaged one of them it now appears it may be a no no.

He has spoken to the local council for advice and they have implied they wouldn't support an application as 'there are no other holiday lets on the property'/ 'we are in the countryside which the council don't like to build in' etc.

My question therefore is do you think it would be worth hiring a planning consultant to fight the cause rather than a plain architect and is there anyone with experience of this kind of thing in this area?

I think most councils offer a pre-application advice service. Ours certainly does (also south west). You can arrange to have an informal meeting with them (taking plans/ideas) and they will then respond with their initial thoughts and suggestions. You can then also go through a more official pre-planning process I believe - you can then incorporate their feedback into any subsequent planning application. Before spending any money on third parties (architect/consultant etc.) it may be worth having a chat with them directly to hear first hand what their objections may be.

Hi rover, welcome to LMH. It is notoriously difficult to get planning permission in Cornwall for anything in the countryside. Suggest you initially go with bythesea's suggestions so that you have a good understanding of what the council's objections are in your case.

Also contact your local parish councillor and get him/her on board. Talk to locals who may be able to point you to the right professional. An architect/consultant is going to cost you thousands of pounds, so you need one with a proven track record of successful similar planning applications with Cornwall Council.

Be prepared for a long, drawn out process.

I agree with talking to the parish council though I've heard that they have little influence on planning decisions nowadays. In spite of that, it's useful to consult and explain and listen. You might find that there's a meeting soon when you can have an informal discussion. If you mine previous planning applications in situations like yours you may find the names of local planning consultants who have been successful. Then paying a planning consultant for an hour or two of their time isn't committing you to an outlay of thousands.

If developing a holiday let is something you want to do and if the initial research has suggested it may not be feasible digging a bit deeper will not cost you much but will give you a better idea of a strategy if you decide you want to push forward.