HERITAGE AND Archaeological ASSESSMENT case studies

Heritage Desk-Based Assessment for 20th century house improvements in Scheduled Monument in Warwickshire

Our clients own a late 20th century house located within the earthwork remains of a medieval village which has been designated a Scheduled Monument. Several Listed buildings stand to the west of the house. The client wished to update the house, including the like-for-like replacement of paths, walls and steps, the conversion of an integral garage to living area, the addition of cladding and render to the building, the replacement of a single-storey extension with a two-storey extension and the addition of a garden room to the rear of the property.

In accordance with Historic England’s request, we produced a Heritage and Archaeological Desk-Based Assessment (HDBA) to assess the proposed development’s potential impact on buried archaeological remains, and on the significance and setting of the surrounding designated heritage assets, in accordance with NPPF and Stratford-on-Avon District Core Strategy 2011-2031 policy CS.8: Historic Environment.

We were able to show that the replacement of paths, walls and steps would have no impact on the Scheduled Monument or underlying buried archaeology, and that based upon previous work we had done on the site, the garage conversion and new extension would be in areas already disturbed and thus unlikely to impact underlying archaeology.

We advised the client that certain easy-win alterations to the exterior of the house would benefit the Scheduled Monument’s setting by reducing the modern house’s visual impact on the experience of the historic earthworks, and thus help to off-set any negative impact of the proposed development. 

We also advised on the design of the proposed garden room’s foundation, which had been a contentious point for Historic England, and provided the client with several options.

After taking our advice, the client gained Scheduled Monument Consent to make the proposed changes.

Heritage Statement: Farm building conversion, North Warwickshire

Our clients own a farm in North Warwickshire and wished to convert two Dutch barns and a 19th century shelter shed to residential use. The LPA’s Conservation Officer adjudged that the initial development plans had a detrimental impact on two Listed buildings immediately to the north, and request that the design be changed and supported by a Heritage Statement.

Our assessment identified that the Listed buildings’ significance was predicated upon certain aspects of their historic, agricultural, and rural character. We thus advised the client on changes to the proposed development of the Dutch barns, including which features to retain and which to remove, use of sympathetic window design, colour schemes, and orientation of the new dwellings. A Heritage Statement was then written to support the new proposals, which were shown to have a positive impact by bringing redundant buildings back into use, by removing discordant extant features that had a negative impact on the Listed buildings’ setting, and by increasing rural housing provision.

The new application was granted permission. 

Heritage Statement: Grade II Listed 18th century house in Warwick’s Conservation Area

Our client wished to demolish rear outbuildings, add a rear extension and alter the frontage of their Grade II Listed, 18th century house in Warwick’s Conservation Area. 

In our Heritage Statement we were able to show that one outbuilding proposed for demolition was of recent construction, and another radically modified in the 20th century, thus both were of low heritage value. We also found the oriel to the frontage to be of relatively recent origin and were able to support its replacement with a new window much more sympathetic to the building’s original architecture. 

A setting assessment explored the impact of the proposed development on the Conservation Area and surrounding Listed buildings, and found that the removal of the outbuildings and replacement with a sympathetic extension would increase the quality of views to the rear for the house, and that the proposed changes to the frontage were much more in keeping with the surrounding architecture and thus had a beneficial impact on the Conservation Area.

Supported by our Heritage Statement, permission was granted for the planning application.

Heritge Statement: Installation of double glazed windows in a Grade II Listed building, Warwickshire

Our client owned part of a Grade II Listed former forge which had been converted to residential use. As part of upgrades to the building to make it fit for modern living, it was proposed to fit double glazed windows. The Planning Officer initially rejected the application and the client commissioned us to produce a Heritage Statement in support of the development.

We produced an assessment of what made the building and its setting significant. We then demonstrated that the use of grey aluminium double glazing and doors would be in keeping with the existing industrial character of the building and would not cause harm to the domestic character of the adjacent Listed buildings. The minor loss of historic fabric did not cause harm to the overall significance of the building in terms of the NPPF, and the visual aspect and sustainability would be enhanced by the improvement to the building’s condition.

The Planning Officer accepted our argument and granted permission. 

Heritage and Archaeological Desk-Based Assessment: Bike Park, Worcestershire

Our client wished to install a bike park at within an area of local woodland, in order to provide a facility for local children to safely learn cycling skills, improve their health and mental well-being and to provide a community resource. The site had been part of an important WWII American military hospital, and was visited by General Patton before D-Day.  

We produced a Heritage and Archaeological Desk-Based Assessment which showed that the potential for buried archaeological remains within the site predating the WWII hospital was low or unknown, but that the majority of the proposed development would have little impact due to the limited depth of the works. The remains of several hut bases were identified including one which was subsequently converted to a Polish church before demolition.  Indeed, we were able to highlight the importance of both the WWII military hospital and the post-war use of the site for housing Polish soldiers and their families, many of whose descendants still live in the area.

We suggested simple alterations to the proposed plans in order to minimise impact whilst still allowing for the bike park to retain all required features. We also suggested to the client that the impact of the development might, in part, be mitigated by including an element of community engagement in regard to the community’s history. 

With out supporting Heritage and Archaeological Desk-Based Assessment the application was granted planning permission. Part of the development required archaeological monitoring and recording, which we supplied. We also put the client in touch with a community archaeology group who were interested in researching the site, and thus provided further community engagement.