Architectural
Services

Through performing in-person site visits and thorough desktop studies, our Architectural Technicians evaluate the feasibility of a project - assessing the favourable and prohibiting features of a proposed build site. Establishing strong relationships with specialists across the South West, we often collaborate and use their expertise during the appraisal stage to guarantee a problem-free build for our clients.

Design briefs serve as an outline of a client’s wants and needs for their upcoming project, and are paramount to the success of any given build - covering everything from feasibility assessments and budgets, to concepts and site surveys. Developing with the project as we get to know you personally, a tight, comprehensive brief equally informs our initial designs and future decision making, as we overcome problems through solutions which are guided by our familiarity with your ultimate goals.

Understanding that builds encompass more than planning and construction, our Architectural Technicians create masterplan documents that serve as the overarching visions of the economic, environmental and social impacts of building on a site. From ensuring that builds adhere to existing community aesthetics, to maximising their environmental sustainability, our masterplan documents build upon a site’s potential as our knowledge and experience help realise your vision.

Upon agreeing a brief, our team produce both traditional sketches and computer-generated visualisations of your build. Our designs are detailed, innovative and accessible - with helpful annotations explaining our choices in a digestible way.

Agreeing on a concept design allows us to finalise and submit a formal proposal to the relevant local planning authority. Any submission from the Cornwall Planning Group features additional reports, opinions and general information that will support our proposal - leading to the best chance of gaining building approval.

For any projects involving more than one contractor, it is the duty of the appointed Principal Designer to plan, manage, monitor and co-ordinate any health and safety matters during the pre-construction phase - ensuring they are in accordance with Construction Design and Management (CDM) Regulations introduced in 2015.

Cornwall Planning Group is more than capable of fulfilling this role across the development process on new builds, demolition work, refurbishments and conversions as part of our productive collaboration with other businesses.

Put in place to ensure inhabitant safety once constructed, building regulations monitor features such as structural integrity, energy use, accessibility, sound insulation and safety throughout the course of a build - from design, throughout construction and applying to any post-build alterations. Offering Full Plan, Building Notice and Retrospective applications, our Architectural Technicians are well-versed in meeting these ever-updating regulations, no matter the nature of your build.

Where required, Cornwall Planning Group will produce construction drawings that extensively detail complex features such as the required dimensions, composition, profile, shape or position of a build. Regularly liaising with other professionals, including engineers, surveyors and consultants to gather useful information, our team is dedicated to ensuring interactions with planning and building control run issue-free.

Recommended to take place before any planning applications are submitted, Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP) assessments set a minimum standard for the energy performance of new build homes that is required to be met before building control signs off on a property. Cornwall Planning Group’s accredited SAP team is headed by a country-leading assessor, preventing costly redesigns and streamlining the planning process as a whole.

The plans and drawings Cornwall Planning Group produce are subsequently used as part of a tender package, which allows building and ancillary contractors to accurately quote fees in a bid to carry out the work. Gathering these tenders allows our team to report back to our clients with in-depth reports and recommendations on the interested parties, based on experience, demonstrated quality and company values.

Maintaining an on-site presence at the various stages of development, our dedicated staff act as the main point of contact between our clients and third parties, ensuring builds are taking place in line with our pre-established objectives. By closely monitoring contract provisions, our administrators’ personable service keeps projects constantly moving forward.

Once builds are underway, Cornwall Planning Group’s in-house specialist administrative and management staff handle all client queries, whilst also providing regular updates on a projects’ progress - providing forecasts on spending, potential pitfalls and ultimate completion. Maintaining contact with the builders, contractors and other specialists involved in a project, our team are the driving force that ensures work is completed to our Architectural Technicians’ specifications, building control regulations, and the initial brief.

A Professional Consultant’s Certificate (PCC) is a document approved by an architect or other such professional construction consultant, verifying the standard of a build through personal site visits across the various stages of development. With this, a newly built or converted property is covered to such an extent that banks and building societies are willing to lend on it - fulfilling the same role as a warranty scheme in allowing tenants to acquire a mortgage.