Cornwall Council has received an outline planning application from Wessex Strategic to build up to 250 new homes in Cornwall – 75 of which are classed as affordable – on land just over a mile from Launceston town centre.

The homes alongside a new road system, public open space and landscaping would be built on 13.84 hectares of land at Stourscombe Farm on the outskirts of the Cornish town if approved.

The site is made up of eight separate fields and is currently used for crop production. To the north of the site is the A30 separated from the site by an area of woodland. Other houses sit to the immediate south and west of the site, with open countryside to the immediate east of the site.

A planning report on behalf of the applicant says a new and improved road network for the site and surrounding area would be created. The existing road has been identified as a ‘rat-run’, with several sections of the surrounding highway network being substandard.

“As such, the creation of a new road network will create a safer and more sustainable road network surrounding the site and also alleviate traffic pressures of congested parts of Launceston town centre.

“The proposed highway improvements 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,” states the report.

Wessex Strategic made a previous pre-application enquiry to Cornwall Council in June 2023, which a planning officer found conflicted with the adopted development plan for Launceston concerning land earmarked for housing.

The application states: “However, the response also confirmed that there is currently a significant shortfall in the delivery of affordable housing in Launceston and that the highway benefits that the scheme is capable of delivering was supported locally.

"As such, it would be for the applicant to demonstrate that the benefits of the proposals are significant so as to justify the setting aside of the current policy position.

“Pre-application feedback received from Cornwall Council confirmed that in September 2023 there were 477 households on the housing register for Launceston, which indicates a significant shortfall in the delivery of affordable housing in the local area.”

You can read more about the application, PA24/02804 via Cornwall Council's planning portal on its website.