You can watch a short video about the project here
On 14 February 2024 plans to create a new Sports Hub at Langarth Garden Village were formally approved by Cornwall Council. Final works are now being completed on the first phase of the project – a floodlit 3,000-capacity FA-compliant football pitch and stands – enabling Truro City Football Club to return home for the start of the 2024 / 2025 football season.
“We said at the start of the Garden Village project that we were going to create a community rather than just providing housing at Langarth” said Olly Monk, Cornwall Council portfolio holder for housing and planning.”. This means delivering key infrastructure in the early stages of the scheme. Providing these much-needed sports facilities ahead of the rest of the development and, most importantly, before any houses are built is a crucial part of achieving this and marks another key milestone for Langarth Garden Village.”
Turning a muddy field at the edge of the Park and Ride into a new permanent home for the club in such a short period of time is a fantastic achievement which has seen hard work, enthusiasm and commitment from everyone involved in the project.
Backed by Sports England and key local stakeholders, including local Cornwall Councillors Dulcie Tudor and David Harris, Kenwyn Parish Council and Truro City, this first phase of the Sports Hub has been successfully delivered by Treveth Holdings in partnership with Cornwall Council with support from CORMAC and Truro City Football Club.
“What we have learnt from a number of other schemes, not just nationally, but internationally as well, is that it is very difficult to create a community without having the infrastructure in place first “ said Harry Lewis, portfolio director for Treveth Holdings LLP. “Our objective has been to create a community at Langarth Garden Village from day one. Not only will this new pitch provide a home for Truro City Football Club, it also provides us with the first building block in the creation of this new community.
“Two years ago Truro City Football Club had a dream of returning to their home town to play football again. We are very proud of the role played by Treveth and Cornwall Council through our new partnership LGV Property Holdings LLP in turning their dream into reality.
Delivering this ambitious and high profile project in such a tight timescale (the pitch needs to be ready by the beginning of August), was always going to be a challenge. Add in the topography of the site and an extremely long period of wet weather in the Spring and it was clear that carrying out the extensive earthworks required and then laying the pitch in time for the end result to meet the standards set down by the FA were going to create additional challenges for all involved.
The design and construction of the pitch has been carried out by CORMAC wit support from Prenn Ltd, CAD architects, Advance Engineering, PC Surveyors, and Airey & Coles.
The team of up to 50 CORMAC staff and sub-contractors, with support from Treveth project manager Richard Cleghorn, were determined not to be beaten and rose to the challenge – ensuring that the green pitch was ready for inspection at the crucial time.
The main pitch, grandstands and temporary facilities are due to be formally handed over to the club at the end of July. Work on providing a permanent club house and facilities, and a Community Hub building requires additional funding and separate planning applications. If successful, work is expected to begin on delivering these phases of the project during 2025.
The plans for the Sports Hub also include another full sized floodlit artificial community pitch which will have a 3G surface and provide an all-weather and all year-round training and playing facilities for local teams including Threemilestone Football Club. Other organisations will include future residents of the Garden Village as well as the communities of Threemilestone and Truro and potentially the wider area.
Delivering these facilities also requires additional funding and separate planning applications to be approved by Cornwall Council. Work is currently taking place to identify and secure the funding needed to progress these elements of the scheme.
Detailed plans are also being developed to set out how the facility will operate with discussions on a Community Users Agreement taking place with Threemilestone Football Club and other local sports clubs.
As well as the Sports Hub, the wider plans for the Garden Village include providing a wide range of infrastructure and community assets which will be secured and delivered from the early stages of the development.
These include the first primary school, currently planned to open in September 2027 to coincide with the completion of the first phase of housing; village squares and business centres; health facilities, parks and urban squares, green spaces, water features, cycle and walking routes and cultural facilities. Work is taking place to develop a stewardship scheme to manage these assets.
Work is also progressing well on the construction of Fordh Langarth (formerly known as the Northern Access Road). The Homes England funded ‘spine’ road will connect the development and provide a route from the A390 at West Langarth through to the Royal Cornwall Hospital. The £47.5m scheme is being carried out in phases to facilitate access whilst works are underway.
Currently due to be completed by the end of 2025, the project, designed and constructed by CORMAC, is both within budget and on schedule despite the significant challenges created by the unprecedented wet weather during the winter of 2023/24.
“Work is progressing well on the project and the team are taking advantage of the good weather since May to advance the earthworks, groundworks and road construction across the site” said Stephen Worthington, Head of Major Projects for CORMAC.
With the decision on the CPO process now expected in the Autumn, the project team plan to seek expressions of interest from national, regional and local housebuilders interested in working in partnership with Treveth and Cornwall Council to deliver the new homes at Langarth GV in the Autumn.
Work on designing the first phase of housing is expected to begin in 2025, with the first 150 homes due to be completed by the beginning of 2027. 35% of these will be affordable, and will include both social rent and shared ownership options for local people.
