A DILAPIDATED building in the heart of Launceston’s historic town centre is set to receive a better future after planning permission for its conversion into a two-bedroom dwelling was approved by Cornwall Council.

Mr Thorne of Bristol based Autumn Investments (Clifton) Ltd applied to Cornwall Council seeking to redevelop 5 Madford Lane, which has been in the company’s ownership since 2022.

The property is one of many traditional buildings within Launceston, with it originally constructed as part of a warehouse alongside its neighbouring addresses of 3 and 4 Madford Lane. The building occupies what is described as a ‘medieval site’, with the lane following the historic course of the medieval town defences surrounding Launceston Castle.

Number 3 Madford Lane served a purpose as a dwelling connected to the warehouse, with its listing stating it is a probably early 19th-century townhouse and included within the Grade II listing for group value.

It is understood that the warehouse aspect of the building came later, with the listing stating that it was built in the mid 19th-century. This part of the building that hosts the three addresses was originally used as a warehouse with both 4 and 5 interconnected internally, with the Grade II listing due to their architectural notability, particularly its rubble wall construction with segmental brick arches.

However, it has for a long time been lay to slow decline, with its exterior increasingly looking shabby and rundown with multiple planning applications coming and going with no clear identity on its future.

That could change after Cornwall Council granted planning permission to develop the left hand side of the building, 5 Madford Lane, into a two-bedroom dwelling – four years after a similar application had been approved but never put into action.

Within the proposed building will be a property that on the ground floor has a combined kitchen and living room, a toilet and walk in utility cupboard, while upstairs there will be two bedrooms, a walk-in wardrobe, bathroom and an outdoor courtyard.

Launceston Town Council said that it supported the proposals.

Cornwall Council approved the proposals subject to a number of conditions that must be followed by the developer.

One of these is that the proposed roof lights on the upper floor must sight flush within the roof plane, in order to safeguard the character of the building.

Another condition states that the works must be carried out in accordance with the Bat and Nesting Bird survey, in order to protect wildlife and their habitats.

It is also prohibited from undertaking any work that is not in the plans which have been approved by Cornwall Council without prior planning permission, with particular emphasis on any work that could enlarge or alter the dwellinghouse, including its roof. This condition is in place to protect the building and means it cannot have work undertaken and applied for retrospectively.

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It must also pay £8,477.99 in a Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL), a pot of money that is levied on developers and used for local projects.