By Lee Trewhela - Local Democracy Reporter

A housing development, the creation of a seclusion suite at Bodmin Hospital and a charity’s bid to provide land to help new farmers are among the latest planning applications submitted to Cornwall Council this week.

Every week more than 100 applications are validated by Cornwall Council and we have selected some of the more interesting proposals.

All planning applications submitted to the council have to be validated and are available for inspection by the public. Anyone is also allowed to submit comments about the applications – whether in support or objection.

The majority of planning applications are decided by planning officers at Cornwall Council under delegated powers. However, some applications will go before elected councillors who sit on planning committees.

No dates have been set for when the planning applications below will be determined. They can be viewed by going to the planning portal on Cornwall Council’s website at www.cornwall.gov.uk/planning-and-building-control

New hospital seclusion suite

NHS Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust has applied to reconfigure part of Bowman Ward at Bodmin Hospital to create a new seclusion suite, courtyard and 3m high anti-climb fence for privacy.

Bodmin Community Hospital provides physical and mental health care services to people in Bodmin and the surrounding area. A range of inpatient and outpatient services are provided from the hospital. Bowman Ward is a psychiatric low secure unit (LSU) with a focus on rehabilitation and recovery. It provides treatment and care for up to 12 men aged 18 and over.

Recycling centre works

An application has gone in for redevelopment of the Bodmin Materials Recycling Facility to include new access, external waste bays and associated infrastructure, to allow construction work to take place on Saturdays between 8am and 5pm until the end of 2023.

Education hub and homes for new farmers and key workers

Farming charity the Gaia Trust has applied to demolish buildings and convert redundant farm buildings at Bodwannick Farm, Nanstallon, Bodmin onto agricultural/ ecological related business units, volunteer and education spaces, as well as three dwellings.

The Gaia Trust acquired Bodwannick Manor Farm in 2014 by way of legacy and it is currently managed for beef cattle according to the trust’s mission of “farming for people and wildlife”. The farmhouse gardens are used to support wellbeing activities in nature for patients from Bodmin’s NHS mental health unit but the plan is for land, garden and building functions need to be brought together and transformed to support “the growth that Cornwall so badly needs”.

The vision is for the Gaia Trust to provide the Bodwannick farmland, initially at a reduced rent, to new farmers; young but experienced entrants who share the charity’s ethos but have not yet had the opportunity to put their enthusiasm, ideas and experience into practice on land they can consider their own.

The tenancy on the Bodwannick land would provide the security young farmers need to build a business. By restoring and converting the farmhouse at Bodwannick into smaller dwellings they would provide affordable rented accommodation not just for the farmers, but potentially key workers such as teachers, NHS staff and those working in other growth generating sectors.

Works to listed church

Pre-application advice has been sought for external works to St Petroc’s Church, Bodmin, a listed church, including a new stone ramp with metal handrails and solar panels on the roof.