Cate Blanchett's Garden Ambitions Clash with Bat Conservation in Cornwall
Renowned actress Cate Blanchett's vision for transforming the grounds of her £1.6 million Cornish eco-home has encountered a significant ecological obstacle. The Oscar winner, aged 56, submitted detailed planning applications in January to develop the land surrounding her clifftop five-bedroom property in Mawgan Porth, a seaside village famously nicknamed 'Hollywood on Sea' due to its celebrity appeal.
Celebrity Haven and Planning History
Mawgan Porth has become a magnet for high-profile figures, with visitors including David Beckham, Kate Winslet, Noel Gallagher, Jason Statham, and Jamie Dornan. Blanchett and her playwright husband, Andrew Upton, originally purchased a £1.6 million cottage on the site, securing planning permission in 2022 to demolish it and construct a new five-bedroom eco-friendly residence. However, the latest proposals for extensive garden landscaping have sparked concerns from environmental experts.
Lighting Plans Raise Bat Protection Alarms
The core issue revolves around the proposed lighting scheme for the new gardens. Despite a 2020 survey indicating no bats were roosting on the property, a subsequent ecological report strongly recommended maintaining low-level lighting to protect foraging bats in the area. The current application includes four distinct lighting features:
- Eight pole-mounted path lights
- Three spike lights positioned under trees
- Three low-level step lights
- Four wall lights
An ecologist has formally raised objections, noting that three of these four lighting options fail to comply with Cornwall Council's strict guidance on low-intensity illumination designed to safeguard bat habitats.
Planning Conditions and Ecological Recommendations
The original 2022 planning permission contained a specific condition mandating that a lighting plan adhering to Bat Conservation Trust guidelines must be submitted and approved before the dwelling could be occupied. The ecological report accompanying that application advised minimizing external lighting wherever possible, specifying that any necessary safety or security lights should be:
- Low level and directed downward
- Equipped with short timers
- Utilizing LED luminaires with warm white spectrum to reduce blue light
- Avoiding metal halide or fluorescent sources entirely
While follow-up surveys in May 2021—during peak bat activity season—found no evidence of bat emergence or roosting within the building slated for demolition, the report emphasized that bats were observed foraging throughout the area, necessitating protective measures.
Detailed Garden Proposals and Local Controversy
The January 20 submission to Cornwall Council outlines ambitious landscaping plans beyond the contentious lighting. These include:
- Mass planting of olearia bushes, sea thrift, and ornamental grasses such as Ampelodesmos mauritanicus
- Strategic scattering of Cornish boulders
- Installation of hardwood decking adjacent to the house
- A grass driveway stabilized with Greenstones pavers
- Corten and Cornish granite steps leading to the property
- Trailing Muehlenbeckia to create 'an evergreen curtain' along banks
- Ornamental trees (Phillyrea latifolia) near vehicle access
- Boundary hedges of Olearia Traversii and climbing Lonicera alseuosmoides
These developments continue a pattern of local friction. Previous construction phases prompted complaints from residents that the picturesque area was being 'ruined,' transformed into a 'building site,' and driving prices to 'unaffordable' levels. One holiday home owner, Karen Burgess, alleged that construction noise 'destroyed' her guests' holidays over the past year, claiming £60,000 in lost rental revenue and accusing Blanchett of having 'total disregard' for neighbors.
The planning authority must now balance celebrity property aspirations against stringent environmental protections and community relations in this coveted coastal enclave.
