Delabole Slate May 2019

Dominic Fairman Cornwall Councillor - St Teath, St Breward & Delabole
All three of my larger villages have on-going development matters that have the potential to impact on them and so I thought
it would useful to highlight the different issues that there are for each, and the different ways of approaching them.
In Delabole there has been a high-profile public event regarding a potential development off Treligga Downs Road of 65 houses
by Wainhomes. The pre-application advice from the Councils planning department has specifically stated that any application
will need community support. This will be judged in the main by the view of the Parish Council who will have the difficult job of
weighing up potential benefits such as affordable housing, highways improvements and extra school capacity against the
overall impact on the village. I hope that residents will seek out their local councillors and make their views known remembering
at all times that your councillors are volunteers doing a difficult job on behalf of the community. I would also welcome any views
and opinions
In St Teath another potential proposal for 24 affordable homes in a field opposite the school has caused concern. This site is
compliant with current policies and with a proposed 100% affordable units is more likely to attract support from the planning
department. The access onto North Road is an issue as the incoming carriageway is often restricted by parked cars especially
during school hours. One of the key considerations is assessing the need for affordable housing in the village for people with
a connection to the parish. With one permission already granted for affordable housing off Trehannick Road people might
query this – however many sites across Cornwall that already have permission are never built due to commercial reasons.
I strongly believe that St Teath village would benefit from a Neighbourhood Development Plan, which would allow the community
to have a greater say in future developments. This has now been successfully done in many villages in Cornwall but does take
a committed dedicated team of volunteers to work alongside the Parish Council to see it through to completion. If this is
something that would interest you then please get in touch with me.
Finally, in St Breward the recent development of 21 houses in Chyryn Drive has generally been well received. All the rented
properties have been filled with local families – however four of the shared ownership units remain empty at the time of writing.
Whilst shared ownership can be a good option for some families – it does have drawbacks, and it is a matter of debate as to
whether these are truly affordable homes. The houses are set at full market value and a sizable deposit is required for the
owned percentage which puts these beyond the means of many local families.
I have urged the Parish Council to investigate promoting a Community Land Trust for the village which could develop small
sites of truly affordable housing for rent or at discount purchase that will be for local people in perpetuity. If you live in St Breward
and would like to be involved, please do get in touch with me. Once again it will require a group of community driven volunteers
to work alongside the Parish Council to achieve this.
Dominic Fairman
07939 122303 - dominic.fairman@cornwallcouncillors.org.uk
Delabole Branch of the
Royal British Legion
The Chairman, Phil Carnon,
welcomed members to the bi-monthly
committee meeting at The Poldark Inn
on 19th March.
Geoff Cleave, our Poppy Appeal organiser, was delighted
to report that the final sum sent to the Appeal was
£2,700.00 and expressed his appreciation to all who had
contributed to raising this wonderful amount.
Future events and dates were discussed for the coming
months and it was decided to hold a commemoration to
mark D Day in June. Please look for posters giving details
of this in the coming weeks.
Our annual Cream Tea will be held at the Methodist
Sunday School room on Sunday 2nd June from 2pm until
4pm. There will be a cake stall, raffle, tombola and sale
of British Legion goods. Why not come along and join us
for a cuppa and chat?
If you would like to join the Delabole Branch then please
have a word with our membership secretary Andrew
Stacey, or one of our members.
The next meeting will be held on Tuesday 21st May at
7pm at The Poldark Inn. Why not pop along...a warm
welcome awaits you.
Patricia Molloy. Secretary...01840. 212529