General Building & Property Development

Building & Property Development Across Cornwall and Devon

Whatever the building work is: structural, remedial, conversion or a full development - one contractor takes it on, runs the site and reports back. Free site visit and a straight, free quote.

Request a Free Quote 07770 946179

15–25 people on the books
SMSTS site management, CPCS plant operation
Fully insured, £5m public liability

20 years

Hands-on construction experience

£5m

Public liability cover

£10m

Employers' liability cover

15–25

People on the books

CPCS & SMSTS

Certificated plant & site management

Service Overview

All areas of building and property development, under one contractor

Some jobs do not fit neatly into a single trade heading. A property that needs structural repairs, new drainage, a reconfigured layout and external works. A barn or outbuilding being converted. A development plot needing enabling works, infrastructure and units. A commercial building needing alterations while it stays open. That is what this service covers: all areas of building work and property development, taken on and managed as one job.

We hold the whole thing together, groundworks and drainage with our own plant, blockwork, carpentry and structural work with our own team, and vetted electricians, plumbers and gas engineers brought in under Calum's project management. With 15 to 25 people on the books we can put the right number of people on site rather than stretching one gang across three jobs.

Planning applications can be submitted on your behalf, building control is handled on notifiable work, and a structural warranty can be arranged on new builds. Pricing is fixed, cost-plus or labour-only, with stage payments and no deposit normally required.

What's included

All areas of building work
Property development and plot work
Structural building works and alterations
Property repairs and remedial works
Full project coordination and site management
Homeowners, developers, commercial clients and landowners

Who it's for

Property developers and investors buying, improving and selling
Landowners bringing forward plots and building out sites
Commercial clients needing alterations, repairs and fit-out works
Homeowners with a project that spans several trades at once
Anyone taking over a stalled or badly executed project

When it's needed

A property needs structural, remedial and refurbishment work together
A barn, outbuilding or commercial space is being converted
A development site needs enabling works, infrastructure and units built
A project has stalled or a previous contractor has walked away
You want one contractor accountable rather than coordinating trades yourself

Why It Matters

What happens when a mixed project has no single owner

Trades pricing around each other's gaps

When a project is split across separately appointed trades, everybody prices their own scope and nobody prices the joins. The gaps: muck away, making good, scaffold, drainage connections - become variations at the worst possible time.

Programme drift with nobody accountable

Each trade protects its own diary. A one-week slip early on multiplies through every subsequent booking, and on a development that is holding costs, finance costs and a sale date moving.

Structural problems uncovered too late

Strip out reveals what surveys miss: failed lintels, rot, inadequate foundations, unsafe alterations. Discovered after the programme and budget are fixed, it stops the job.

Unapproved work that blocks a sale

Notifiable work carried out without building control, or beyond what planning allowed, resurfaces at sale, remortgage or letting, and putting it right retrospectively is far dearer than doing it correctly.

Sites that are not managed

Poor site management shows up as accidents, damage, theft, complaints from neighbours and enforcement attention. On a commercial site it can also mean shutting the client's business down.

Money paid ahead of work

Large up-front payments on multi-trade projects leave you exposed if progress stalls. Staged payment against work actually completed keeps the incentive in the right place.

Common mistakes we're asked to put right

Fixing a budget and programme before strip out has shown what is actually there
Self-managing eight trades to save a management fee, then losing months
Leaving drainage, external works and levels out of the early scope
Assuming planning and building control will be somebody else's problem
Building beyond what was approved and dealing with it later
Choosing on price alone without checking insurance, capacity or site management

Our Process

How the job runs, step by step

Every job follows the same order, so you always know what has happened and what comes next.

Step 1
Free site visit and appraisal
Calum visits, looks at the building or site, the ground, the drainage and the access, and gives an honest view of what the project involves and where the risks sit. Free of charge.
Step 2
Scope, design and consents
We work with your architect, designer and engineer, advise on what needs designing, submit planning applications on your behalf where required, and notify building control on notifiable work.
Step 3
Price, programme and payment terms agreed
A written scope and programme, priced fixed where it can be defined and cost-plus where it genuinely cannot, with stage payments against completed work and no deposit normally required.
Step 4
Site set-up and enabling works
Site secured and managed under SMSTS-certificated site management, services located, clearance, demolition and groundworks carried out with our own plant and CPCS-carded operators.
Step 5
Structural and construction works
Foundations, drainage, structural repairs and alterations, blockwork, carpentry and roofing carried out to the engineer's details, with building control inspecting each notifiable stage.
Step 6
Trades coordinated to finish
Vetted electricians, plumbers and gas engineers sequenced under our management, followed by plastering, second fix, decorating and floor finishes.
Step 7
External works, sign-off and handover
Drives, levels, drainage and landscaping completed, building control sign-off obtained, structural warranty in place where arranged, and the project handed over with the site cleared.

What You Get

The difference this makes on your general building & property development job

One contractor for the whole project

Groundworks, structure, trades and finishes under a single scope and a single programme, so nothing sits in a gap between two contracts.

Capacity to match the job

15 to 25 people on the books and our own plant, so the right number of people are on site rather than one gang spread across three jobs.

Site managed, not just staffed

SMSTS-certificated site management, secured and managed sites, and CPCS-carded operators on the machines.

Planning and building control handled

Applications submitted on your behalf and notifiable stages inspected and signed off, so consents are not left as your problem.

Straight answers when something is uncovered

What we find gets shown to you with a price and a recommendation, before the work is done rather than after.

Commercial flexibility

Fixed price, cost-plus or labour-only, with staged payment against completed work and no deposit normally required.

Fully insured across the whole scope

£5m public liability, £10m employers' liability, products liability and Contractors' All Risks cover for the works, plant and tools.

Warranty available on new build elements

A structural warranty can be arranged on new builds, which matters for finance, letting and resale.

In Detail

Building and property development in detail

General building works

This is the bulk of it: structural alterations and openings, wall rebuilds, new floors and roofs, internal reconfiguration, new drainage, external works and everything needed to take a building from where it is to where it needs to be. Work is carried out to the structural engineer's details where the structure is affected, and building control inspects the notifiable stages. Because groundworks and drainage are our own trades, the parts of a building project that usually get subcontracted twice over: the dig, the drains, the external levels - are handled directly.

Property development and plot work

For developers and landowners we take on the sequence that turns land into finished units: site clearance and enabling works, access and infrastructure, drainage and utility ducting, foundations and slabs, shell construction, and fit-out through to completion. Phasing matters more than anything else on a development, building in the order that lets you sell, let or draw down finance at the right time. We plan the programme around that rather than around the easiest construction sequence.

Conversions and change of use

Barn conversions, outbuilding conversions, garage conversions, annexes and commercial-to-residential work all share the same challenge: an existing structure that was never built for the use it is about to get. Work usually involves assessing and upgrading foundations, underpinning or strengthening walls, forming new openings, inserting new floor and roof structures, and bringing insulation, damp proofing, drainage and ventilation up to a standard the building was never designed for. Planning and building control involvement is heavier on these projects, and we handle both.

Structural works and remedial repairs

Where a building has developed a problem, the work is diagnostic first:

Cracking investigated for cause: foundation movement, thermal movement, failed lintels or water
Failed lintels and unsupported openings corrected with engineered beams and padstones
Wall rebuilds, repairs and tying where sections have bowed or cracked
Foundation issues addressed to the engineer's design
Rot, beetle damage and failed structural timber replaced, with the moisture source dealt with
Damp problems traced to ground levels, drainage, bridged cavities or failed details
Retaining walls and external levels rebuilt where they are causing the problem

Commercial and agricultural projects

Commercial work brings the extra requirement of keeping a business running. That means phasing works around trading hours, separating public and site areas properly, keeping access and fire routes usable, and managing noise and dust. Agricultural work brings yards, bases, portal frame buildings, tracks, drainage and heavier loadings. Both need site management as much as trade skill, which is where SMSTS-certificated management and a directly employed team of 15 to 25 people matters: the site is run, not just worked on.

Project coordination and site management

On a mixed project the coordination is the service. Calum runs the programme, sequences our own teams and the subcontracted electricians, plumbers and gas engineers, orders long-lead materials in time, arranges scaffold and plant, books and attends building control inspections, and deals with the neighbours, deliveries and access. You get one point of contact who knows what happened yesterday and what is happening next week, which on a multi-trade project is worth more than any individual trade rate.

Taking over stalled and poorly executed projects

We are regularly asked to pick up work someone else started. That begins with an honest assessment: what has been built, whether it was built correctly, what has been signed off, and what has to be opened up or removed before continuing. It is not the most comfortable conversation, but it is far cheaper than building on top of work that is wrong. Where previous work is sound we continue from it; where it is not we tell you plainly what needs redoing and what it will cost.

Who we work for

Homeowners with projects spanning several trades, self-builders, property developers, investors, landlords, landowners, commercial clients and farms. The common thread is a project that needs someone to own it end to end. We work from our yard at Horningtops just outside Liskeard, across the whole of Cornwall and through Devon as far as Exeter, Monday to Saturday, 7:30am to 6:00pm.

FAQs

General Building & Property Development questions we get asked most

If your question isn't here, ring Calum and ask, a straight answer costs nothing.

What does 'all areas of building and property development' actually include?

General building works, structural alterations and repairs, conversions and change of use, refurbishments, new build elements, groundworks and drainage, external works, and full project coordination for developers, landowners, commercial clients and homeowners. If it comes under building or property development, it is worth a conversation.

How do you price a mixed project?

Fixed price where the scope can be defined, cost-plus where it genuinely cannot, which is common on conversions and remedial work until strip out has shown what is there - or labour-only if you are supplying materials. Stage payments against completed work, and no deposit is normally required.

Will you take over a project another builder has left?

Yes, and we start with an honest assessment of what has been built, whether it was built correctly and what has been signed off. Where the existing work is sound we carry on from it; where it is not, we will tell you plainly what needs redoing rather than building on top of a problem.

Do you work for developers as well as homeowners?

Both. We work for homeowners, self-builders, property developers, investors, landlords, landowners and commercial clients, from a single property needing several trades to small housing developments and plot builds.

Can you handle planning and building control?

Yes. We submit planning applications on your behalf where required, notify building control on notifiable work, and book, attend and clear the inspections through every stage including completion.

Do you take on barn and outbuilding conversions?

Yes. These usually involve assessing and upgrading foundations, strengthening or underpinning walls, forming new openings, inserting new floor and roof structures, and bringing insulation, damp proofing, drainage and ventilation up to current standards. Planning and building control involvement is heavier, and we handle both.

How big a team can you put on site?

We have 15 to 25 people on the books plus our own plant, so we can staff a project properly rather than stretching one gang across several jobs. On the visit Calum will tell you honestly what resource the job needs and when we could start it.

Can you work around a business that has to stay open?

Yes. Commercial work is phased around trading hours where needed, with proper separation of public and site areas, access and fire routes kept usable, and noise and dust managed. Site management is handled under Calum's SMSTS certification.

What insurance do you carry for larger projects?

£5 million public liability, £10 million employers' liability, products liability, and Contractors' All Risks cover for the contract works, our own and hired-in plant, and employees' tools. Calum holds CPCS for plant operation and SMSTS for site management safety.

Can a structural warranty be arranged?

Yes, on new builds a structural warranty can be arranged, worth deciding at the start, because warranty providers want evidence collected as the build progresses.

Which areas do you work in?

All of Cornwall and Devon as far as Exeter, from our base at Horningtops just outside Liskeard: including Liskeard, Callington, Menheniot, Dobwalls, St Ive, Looe, Saltash, Torpoint, Bodmin, Launceston, Fowey, St Austell and Tavistock.

Related Work

Services that usually go with this one

Most jobs cross more than one trade. Taking them together keeps the programme and the price tighter.

New Builds & House Building Extensions & Refurbishments Groundworks Block Work Building Control & Planning Support Electrical & Plumbing

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Get a free general building & property development quote from someone who's walked the ground

Calum will come out, look at the site and give you a straight price: fixed, cost-plus or labour-only, whichever suits the job. No deposit normally required, and stage payments as work is completed.

15–25 people on the books
SMSTS site management, CPCS plant operation
Fully insured, £5m public liability

Request a Free Quote Call 07770 946179

Mon–Sat, 7:30am – 6:00pm

Ready to get your project moving?

Send us the details and Calum will come out, look at the ground and give you a straight, free quote: fixed price, cost-plus or labour-only, whichever suits the job.