Policy information sourced from St Albans District Local Plan

90 Shopfronts and Advertisements in Conservation Areas and on Listed Buildings - Conservation Areas

Shopfronts and advertisements shall be designed to take into account the following factors:

  1. Removal of historic shopfronts or historic features of shopfronts shall be avoided in favour of repair and maintenance;
  2. Shopfronts shall be considered as an intrinsic part of the containing building as a whole. Shopfronts should be designed to offer visual support to the upper floors;
  3. Design and materials of shopfronts and advertisements shall have regard to the design of the building and the location. Dutch blinds are not normally permitted. Traditional materials in accordance with the Council’s Design Guide shall normally be used;
  4. The amount and scale of advertising shall respect the appearance of the building or the area. Advertisements which do not preserve or enhance the character or appearance of the conservation area will be refused;
  5. Fascias shall not be out of scale with the building and every opportunity shall be taken to reduce overdeep or overwide fascias. Fascias shall not run through several distinct elevations and conversely fascias shall relate where more than one shop occupies a single building. Modern box fascia signs shall be avoided in favour of signwritten fascias or flat fascias with individually applied letters. The size of lettering shall relate to the scale of the fascia and building;
  6. Hanging signs - small traditional signs will be encouraged in place of bulky modern projecting box signs;
  7. Illumination - full internal illumination of signs will normally be refused. Externally illuminated signs will normally be encouraged;
  8. Advertisements will also be assessed against Policy 78;
  9. Alterations to listed buildings will also be assessed against Policy 86.

For more information please see the Local Plan