Housing Requirement for Cornwall: Who’s having the say?
CORNWALL COUNCIL DRAFT LOCAL (HOUSING) PLAN
OR: SELLING CORNWALL BY THE POUND
By Craig Weatherill
For this, and true to their accustomed practice of utterly ignoring Cornish expertise and opinion, Cornwall Council went outside Cornwall to commission a report on Housing Requirement for Cornwall, selecting Peter Brett Associates of BRISTOL, who produced his report for the Council in October 2012.
Brett Associates then chose to seek advice from a number of organisations, and were kind enough to print a list of “Organisations Participating in Housing Market Consultation” in their report. Let’s just have a look and see who knows best for Cornwall, shall we?
BARRATT (Homes) – head office: London.
LINDEN/ROSEMULLION (Homes) – Head Office in Middlesex. Linden Homes’ founder, Andrew Sells, is now Chairman of Natural “England” so we can all see where that appointment’s going, can’t we?
WAINHOMES – very shy of revealing their Head Office, but their nearest regional office is in Newton Abbot.
PERSIMMON (Homes) – Head Office: York.
GALLIFORD TRY: Hold on….this is the name behind Linden Homes! TWO bites of the cherry?
IAN HOBSON DESIGNS: Based in Brixham.
SAVILLS: Estate agents. Head Offices: New York and London.
DUCHY OF CORNWALL: ‘Nuff said!
NATHANIEL LICHFIELD: Regional offices in Cardiff, London, Newcastle, Leeds and Manchester.
BOVIS (Homes): Head Office: Kent.
Then, at last, the token Cornish firms:
GOLDRING YATES: Estate agents, Truro & St Agnes
PERCY WILLIAMS: Developer. Redruth
GOUNDRY PEARCE: Estate agent. Truro.
I just felt that the long-suffering residents, voters and council tax payers of Cornwall should know who we’re being sold to.
First written 20 August 2014, and remains as relevant today
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