Metters and Wellby Architecture & Design

13/10/2026

Cornwall is beautiful partly because it's rarely flat.

Hills, valleys, coastal slopes, they make for stunning settings. They also make for complex projects if you don't understand what you're working with from the outset.

Topography affects almost everything:

→ Where drainage needs to go
→ How foundations are designed
→ How a building sits in its surroundings — and how planners view that
→ Whether certain designs are even viable on a given plot

Applying a flat-site approach to a sloped site will cost you. In time, in redesign, and sometimes in a refusal.

Getting a proper site appraisal before any design work begins isn't caution for caution's sake. It's just good sense.

If you're thinking about a project and your site isn't straightforward, that's exactly when we'd encourage you to start with a conversation, not a sketch.

06/10/2026

We've won. 🏆

Sea Reach has just been named the Cornwall winner at the International Property Awards.

We're really proud of this one. Sea Reach touched every part of what we do: design, planning strategy, and an understanding of Cornwall's coastal landscape, and having it recognised at this level means a great deal to the whole team.

Thank you to everyone who helped make it happen. From the clients who trusted us with their vision to everyone here who worked on it, and to Claydons, who's currently building it.

More to come on this. Watch this space. 👀

05/10/2026

29/09/2026

The next Bude Business Breakfast is tomorrow, and there are still a few spaces left. ☕

If you're based in or around Bude and you've been meaning to come along, now's the time. It's a genuinely good morning, local business people, real conversations, and a chance to connect with people who are building something in this part of Cornwall.

Get in touch today to grab your spot.

25/09/2026

The most important stage of your project happens before anything is drawn.

It's easy to jump straight into design. A new site, a fresh idea, and the excitement is real. But without knowing what your site will and won't allow, what the planning constraints are and what a realistic budget looks like, you're designing in the dark.

That's where projects start to go wrong. Designs drawn for sites that won't get permission. Budgets set without knowing what construction actually costs here. Months lost.

Our Project Feasibility Appraisal answers the hard questions first. So when design begins, it begins with confidence and a clear picture of what's possible.

Got a site or a project idea you've been sitting on? That's exactly where we start. 📋

Link in bio to see how it works.

22/09/2026

Something that catches a lot of people off guard, especially with rural and coastal projects in Cornwall.

Ecology surveys.

Cornwall's biodiversity is genuinely remarkable. But that richness means that planning applications, particularly for new builds, barn conversions, or sites near hedgerows and watercourses, often require ecological assessments before permission can be granted.

Bat surveys. Habitat assessments. Protected species checks. These aren't rare edge cases here, they're a regular part of the process for the right kind of site.

The important thing to know: some surveys can only be carried out at specific times of year. If you don't plan for them early, they can cause real delays.

It's one of the reasons we build ecology considerations into our feasibility work from the start. No nasty surprises down the line.

Questions about your site? We're always happy to chat.

18/09/2026

With over 40 years’ experience working on projects across Cornwall, we understand which sites may require a Flood Risk Assessment and can advise our clients on the best approach from the outset.

In Cornwall, it's relevant more often than you might expect, particularly for coastal plots, valley sites, and properties near rivers or streams.

If your site falls within a flood risk zone, a Flood Risk Assessment will typically be required as part of your planning application. And depending on the findings, it can significantly shape what's permissible and how a building needs to be designed.

The good news: it's manageable when you identify it early and plan for it. The challenge comes when it's a surprise.

It's one of the many site-specific factors we assess as part of our feasibility work, so that nothing derails a project later that could have been anticipated at the start.

Every site tells its own story. Knowing how to read it matters. 📍

17/09/2026

No two weeks look the same here.

At any given point, the team might be across a site visit in North Cornwall, a pre-application meeting with a planning officer, a CGI review with a developer, a technical drawing set for a project heading to building regs, and a first feasibility conversation with someone who's just found a piece of land they're excited about.

That variety is one of the things we genuinely love about this work. And the fact that we handle all of it in-house — design, planning, visualisation, technical, landscape, interior design — means nothing gets lost in translation between different teams.

Small practice. Big range. Always personal.

If you've got something in the pipeline, we'd love to hear about it. 👋

16/09/2026

Choosing the right materials for a project in Cornwall isn't just a design decision, it's often a planning one too.

Local planning authorities across Cornwall frequently expect proposals to reflect the character of their surroundings. That means slate, stone, and timber tend to feature heavily in what gets approved.

And it's something we love to work with. Cornwall's material palette is genuinely beautiful, and when it's used well, it connects a building to its landscape in a way that nothing else can.

Knowing what planners are looking for and why is part of what 40 years in this county teaches you.

If you're at the early stages of thinking about a project, it's worth having that conversation before designs get too far along. Happy to talk it through.

14/09/2026

Could pre-application advice help your project?

Before submitting a planning application in Cornwall, it can be helpful to understand how the local planning authority is likely to view your proposal.

It's an opportunity to open a conversation before anything formal is submitted. To understand how they're likely to view your proposal, flag any concerns early, and adjust your approach before it costs you time or money.

In Cornwall especially - with conservation areas, AONB constraints, coastal sensitivities, and protected hedgerows all in the mix — going in blind can be a risk.

We've been navigating this landscape for over 40 years, and the pre-application service is a regular part of how we work.

Getting it right before you submit is always easier than appealing after a refusal.

If you're thinking about a project and want to understand the lay of the land first, a 30-minute discovery call is a great place to start. Link in bio.