Premier Inn Hotels LTD has formally appealed Cornwall Council’s decision to refuse its plans for a 90-bedroom hotel in St Ives.

The appeal, submitted to the council's planning inspectorate, seeks a local public inquiry to review the council’s refusal.

Premier Inn’s parent company Whitbread’s planning application was presented by Cornwall Council planning officers to the members of Cornwall Council’s West Cornwall Sub-Area Planning Committee on April 29, 2024, with recommendations for planning approval.

Protesters made their feelings known about the Premier Inn plans outside the St Ives Town Council meeting in 2023 Protesters made their feelings known about the Premier Inn plans outside the St Ives Town Council meeting in 2023 Following a debate, the committee members voted to refuse the application on the grounds that the proposed hotel would adversely impact the character and appearance of the wider area, including far-reaching views of the site from within St Ives Town.

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Louise Woodruff, property acquisitions manager at Whitbread, said: “We are hopeful that we will have the opportunity to bring Premier Inn to St Ives.

“We believe that a Premier Inn hotel in St Ives will increase choice for visitors, generate year-round jobs and help the popular destination to prosper all year-round. We await the next steps from the Planning Inspectorate.”

The appeal documents, prepared by JLL on behalf of Premier Inn Hotels Ltd, summarise the benefits of the proposed 90-bedroom hotel. These included:

  • An identified need for an alternative type of accommodation offering year-round, budget hotel rooms on a previously developed site within St Ives
  • The creation of 30 permanent FTE year-round jobs at the hotel once fully operational with a further 80 (FTE) roles supported during the construction phase
  • A highly sustainable building that would utilise renewable technologies such as PV panels, air source heat pumps and space heating / hot water systems to achieve a BREEAM rating of ‘Outstanding’, exceeding the local policy requirement

 This document has been marked as Non-Confidential - A Biodiversity Net Gain in excess of 10 per cent

 An economic impact assessment submitted as part of the planning application also calculated the proposed 90-bedroom Premier Inn would contribute £2.2 million in visitor expenditure per year to the St Ives economy.