Cornwall Design Guide

Design Quality is vital to Cornwall’s planning agenda. There has never been a more critical time to create and take up opportunities to make new development better. Improving the quality of our places and buildings will help us respond positively to:

• climate change
• help our residents to lead healthier lives
• creating high quality streets and public spaces

To help this we have produced and adopted a new Cornwall Design Guide.

Cornwall Design Guide

The Cornwall Design Guide was adopted in December 2021 and aims to support the Cornwall Local Plan. It provides a guide to delivering high quality places to live for Cornwall. It now includes our streetscape design guide.

The Design Guide supports:

• the Cornwall Local Plan and
• the Climate Emergency Development Plan Document and
• the policy in Connecting Cornwall: 2030 Local Transport Plan.

The design guide is a ‘living document’ and will be updated from time to time as required. We welcome comments on it. Please email: localplans@cornwall.gov.uk if you have any comments.

Cornwall Design Review Panel

The Cornwall Design Review Panel (CDRP) draws on a pool of external design expertise. This is supported by experienced officers from within the Council.
The purpose of the Design Review Panel is to encourage design excellence in both the public and private sectors. It can:

• review development proposals within Cornwall and
• provide constructive guidance to developers, clients and their appointed agents.

The aim is to enhance the quality of the design of significant projects.

Other related guidance

The new guide sits alongside other new and updated guidance documents including:

• Chief Planning Officer's Advice Note on Good Design in Cornwall
• Distinctiveness Toolkit (coming soon)
• Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape World Heritage Site SPD
• Conservation Area Appraisals and Management Plans
• Cornwall Building Stone and Slate Guide - available on request
• Cornwall Materials Guide - coming soon. This document will provide guidance on natural building materials, textures and colours. If you have any information which may be beneficial please contact localplan@cornwall.gov.uk)
• Biodiversity Guide

Neighbourhood Planning Groups may also be interested in our:

• Neighbourhood planning toolkit guidance