Town and county councillor Alan Jewell is seeking official advice on proposals to create 35 student beds by converting and rebuilding redundant farm buildings on his property at Maenporth.

Mr Jewell is seeking pre-application advice from Cornwall Council on the scheme which would see two sites at Penance Mill Farm, The Springs and The Dairy, transformed into student accommodation, ranging from one, nine bedroom flat to four studios.

Mr Jewell said: "There is still a need for student accommodation and we are in a sustainable location. The new buildings will cover the same footprint and size - they will not be any bigger than what is there.

"What is there now is just redundant farm buildings which are falling down round our ears. There is plenty of room for parking and we are even planning some allotments. We are not planning rabbit hutches, they are going to top end flats aimed at postgraduate, fourth year masters' students."

Preparing for possible criticism, Mr Jewell, who recently bought the neighbouring Falmouth Pitch and Putt, said: "At the end of the day I am a businessman. There is a demand for student accommodation and these buildings are falling down and have not been used for years. The development will affect me more than anyone. I have no idea what they (Cornwall Council) will say, they may not like it - we just have to wait and see what happens."