The most capable person to run your household budget is not the man next door or someone a couple of streets away, but... you.

You alone know and understand the complex domestic arrangements, the individual needs of those involved, and the most efficient way of organising the incomings and outgoings.

That was precisely the premise of those who put forward the idea of a Cornish Assembly in 2000 — that as a region Cornwall was big enough and distinct enough to warrant a degree of self-rule.

Separatist calls for a fully independent Cornwall had, of course, been around for at least 50 years, though such aspirations tended to be more theoretical than practical and failed to attract public support on a convincing scale.

It wasn't until the autumn of 2000 and the formation of the Cornish Constitutional Convention that ordinary men and women in Cornwall realised there was an alternative both to the uncompromising separatist calls of nationalists and the status quo of direct rule from Westminster. What was being proposed was a halfway house, an assembly, with legislative powers on issues directly relating to the people of Cornwall.

From the start, the Convention was careful to establish its credentials; it campaigned for a modern form of governance designed to strengthen Cornwall and to positively address its population's unique problems.

Crucially, it stuck to the unshakeable principle that the "only region for Cornwall is Cornwall" and that to be effective any new administration would need to stand alone, with no deals with Devon or a wider South West region.

This strategy struck a chord, particularly with young people who had grown up in Cornwall but were faced with the inevitability of becoming economic outward migrants as a consequence of dire job opportunities and the lowest wages in the UK.

A campaign, initiated by Mebyon Kernow and quickly taken up by the Convention, sparked a popular movement to gather signatures from the public in support of an assembly.

On high streets from Saltash to St Ives, groups of enthusiastic young people armed with leaflets, clipboards and well-rehearsed arguments spent their Saturdays inviting people to sign up.

Within a very short time, supporters were delivering an audited petition of 50,000 names to Downing Street. And it is a tribute to their dedication and tenacity that the petition remains by far the biggest expression of public support for regional devolution from anywhere in Britain. What's more, by 2003 a MORI poll undertaken for Cornwall County Council indicated that 55% of the Cornish population favoured devolution to a Cornish Assembly.

Recalling the events of a decade ago, Convention chairman Bert Biscoe said: "Many people very much liked the idea of regional devolution. It chimed with what they had been working towards for many years. And one thing bonded us all – that if there was to be a move towards regional government, then the only region for Cornwall was Cornwall.

"We were clear in our ambition, confident in our ability and, of course, driven by our innate knowledge and intuition that Cornwall is different and needs to be positively recognised as being such."

In the intervening years, the Liberal Democrat domination of Cornwall County Council resulted in what some considered to be a dilution of those early dreams.

To some the establishment of a unitary authority is a step in the right direction, while to others — most notably Mebyon Kernow — it represents betrayal.

MK leader and Cornwall councillor Dick Cole summed up the views of many when he described the unitary authority as a "shambles" forced on the people of Cornwall by politicians displaying an "arrogant disregard" for their wishes.

However, taking the pragmatic approach, Mr Cole stood for election and was voted on to the unitary Cornwall Council last year. He maintains an opposition to its foundation but accepts that the best way to serve Cornwall is from within the new authority.

Looking forward to the Convention's next phase, fellow Cornwall Council member Bert Biscoe says he remains optimistic that the aspiration for a Cornish Assembly will one day become a reality.

"As we enter our second decade the Cornish Constitutional Convention can look back and reflect that we have stuck to our cause, we have moved national discussion forward, we have stamped our case into the minds of those who shape and deliver national policy, and we have maintained a positive, cheerful personality.

"The campaign is not a nationalist or politically biased campaign. It is inclusive, serious about improving conditions and prospects for all those living in and doing business with Cornwall. It is convinced of the justice and the common sense of its objective, and is in it for the long haul."