The St Ives Community Land Trust project to renovate the Old Vicarage building in St Ives to provide six affordable flats for local people in the heart of the town has reached a key milestone with a new agreement between St Ives Community Land Trust and community housing provider Three Seas Cornwall, supported by St Ives Town Deal.
Known originally as the Parsonage and built in the late 1830’s, the building in Street-an-Pol was home to the Vicars of St Ives until the early 1950’s when Canon Jenkin moved into a newly constructed vicarage off St Andrew’s Street. The building was then taken over by St Ives Borough Council who converted the upper stories into four flats while the ground floor was owned by Cornwall County Council and used as Community Rooms for a number of local organisations, a camera club, various church Sunday schools, the local WI, a day nursery as well as for other events.
The Old Vicarage then lay empty from 2016 until the local community through the St Ives Community Land Trust raised the funds to buy the property in 2019 with the aim of rescuing the historic building and converting it to provide much needed affordable homes for the local community.
The group raised community funds and loans to buy the building and, with a large grant from St Ives Town Deal to fund its redevelopment, worked hard to get it refurbished. Despite having to overcome extra challenges and complications, from knotweed to unknown old burials discovered in the garden, their efforts persisted until the available funds came to an end. The Trust is pleased with the successful redevelopment of the upper storeys and is looking forward to the final construction stage by Three Seas.
Work will now continue thanks to the new agreement which will see Three Seas take on the freehold of the building and gain access to Homes England funding, together with additional funding from Cornwall Council’s Land Remediation Fund.
The final build period is expected to be no more than 6 months and will be supported by a short-term finance loan from Resonance Community Developers.
St Ives Community Land Trust has welcomed the agreement which will mean enable its affordable housing objective to be achieved.
“We’re really pleased to have agreed a deal with Three Seas that will bring in the final funds needed to complete the job and get these flats open for local people “ said Jill Block from CLT. “It’s a really good example of how community groups can be stronger when we come together.”
Three Seas Cornwall are delighted to be involved in the project. “Our access to the Government money, which is aimed at exactly this kind of project, means that we can fill the gap and get the homes ready“ said Three Seas Manager Simon Ryan.
“The great news is that these will be secure Social Rent tenancies, so really and truly affordable, and available only to local people with a strong connection to the town. We’ll take on the long-term management of the flats and retain them as local homes in perpetuity.”
Andrew Baragnawith, Chair of St Ives Town Deal Board, welcomes the new agreement which he says, will not only secure the future of the project and deliver the much-needed new affordable homes but will also preserve a historic building in the centre of the town.
“One of the key aims of our Town Deal programme is to help provide more affordable homes for local people and we have been working closely with the St Ives Community Land Trust and Cornwall Council to support the funding needed to complete this project. I am delighted that an agreement has been reached with Three Seas Cornwall and look forward to seeing the first tenants moving into their new homes in due course”.
Councillor Luke Rodgers, Cornwall Councillor for St Ives East, Lelant and Carbis Bay, also fully supports the project. “I am acutely aware of the severe shortage of affordable and social housing available to local people within our communities. The lack of accessible housing for residents with strong local connections continues to place significant pressure on families, young people and key workers who wish to remain living and working within the area.
“It is, therefore, extremely encouraging to see projects such as this progressing, particularly where existing buildings can be refurbished and brought back into long-term sustainable use for the benefit of local residents. The proposal to secure six homes for permanent Social Rent would make a meaningful contribution towards addressing local housing need within St Ives.”
Welcoming the new agreement, Andrew George MP added “I strongly support the work of St Ives CLT, including the monumental effort made to deliver affordable homes for locals at the Old Vicarage Flats. I recognise that to ensure this development can be completed, with all the benefits that these affordable homes will bring to the community, it is best to transfer to Three Seas Cornwall which – as a Registered Provider – is better placed to complete the project and secure Homes England funding.
“I look forward to seeing these flats completed and serving the purpose for which they were designed; as good quality homes for locals who need them, in the heart of the town.”
Tom Crook, Senior Investment Manager at Resonance, said “The Old Vicarage Flats project demonstrates what can be achieved when local communities, public sector partners and specialist housing providers work together to overcome challenges and deliver lasting social impact.
“We are delighted to provide the catalytic finance that has helped unlock the final stage of the development, enabling six genuinely affordable homes to be delivered for local people in the heart of St Ives.
“This project is a powerful example of how targeted investment can help turn ambitious community-led housing schemes into reality, and we look forward to seeing it completed and welcoming its first residents in 2027.”
If all goes according to plan, the flats should be ready to welcome tenants from early 2027, though the organisers are aware that timetables can slip and have to be kept flexible. Full announcements on the housing availability will be made nearer the time.
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