Up to 250 homes could be coming to land between Launceston and Stourscombe, according to new plans submitted to Cornwall Council. 

Andrew Pegg, c/o Wessex Strategic Ltd, has submitted a pre-application advice request to Cornwall Council for a proposed development of up to 250 homes across 13.84 hectares (34.2 acres) of land at Stourscombe Farm, Launceston.  

A pre-application enquiry to the Cornwall Council planning team is undertaken when a developer wishes to discuss their proposals with the local authority in order to ascertain the best course of action prior to a full application.  

Describing the site proposed for the development, the agents for the applicant, Greenslade Taylor Hunt, wrote in a letter to Cornwall Council: “The proposed development immediately adjoins the eastern and northern boundaries of the settlement of Launceston and Stourscombe respectively, and sits south of the A30.

“Bounding the site are two further roads, consisting of a minor unnamed single lane road running along the eastern boundary of the site and to the west is a single lane, no through road called Stourscombe Wood.”

They continued: “To the west and south of the proposal site is existing residential development. The proposed development site comprises approximately 13.84 hectares (34.20 acres) of land and has a number of existing vehicular access points in the form of field entrances accessed via the adjacent road network that bounds the site. The site is made up of eight separate fields, each of which bounded by mature, native species hedgerows.  

“The pre-application site is currently used for arable crop production. To the north of the site sits the A30 separated from the site by an area of woodland. Residential properties sit to the immediate south and west of the site with open countryside siting to the immediate east of the site.” 

The letter also detailed what they propose to do with the land in terms of development, continuing: “The concept plan demonstrates how the site could be developed to provide up to 250 dwellings, however, it is possible that this figure may be subject to changes depending on any potential impacts associated with drainage infrastructure and the need to achieve the required levels of Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) and landscape mitigation. The concept plan places a strong emphasis on managing potential drainage issues in response to the site being within a ‘critical drainage site’, mitigating landscape loss where possible and delivering sufficient improvements to the existing highway.  

“The concept plan is based on offering a range of sizes and scales of dwellinghouse and will feature an appropriate mix of open market and affordable housing. All of which will be built to a high standard that reflects the local rural vernacular and built form of Stourscombe and the wider context of Launceston. The proposal seeks to create a new and improved road network for the site and surrounding area. 

“The existing road has been identified as a ‘rat-run’ in the Hydrock Technical Note, as such the creation of a new road network will create a safer and more sustainable road network surrounding the site. This highway will also serve as the primary access for the new development and will run through the site from east to south. The existing access to Stourscombe Farmhouse at the centre of the site will be retained. The new road network will also provide sufficient room for emergency, delivery and utility vehicles to access the site.” 

The pre-application enquiry can be viewed on the Cornwall Council planning portal under PA23/00766/PREAPP.