Policy information sourced from Three Rivers Development Management Policies DPD

DM3 The Historic Built Environment

When assessing applications for development, there will be a presumption in favour of the retention and enhancement of heritage assets and to putting heritage assets to viable and appropriate uses to secure their future protection. Applications will only be supported where they sustain, conserve and where appropriate enhance the significance, character and setting of the asset itself and the surrounding historic environment.

Listed Buildings

The Council will preserve the District’s Listed Buildings and will only support applications where:

  • The extension/alteration would not adversely affect its character as a building of special architectural or historic interest both internally or externally or its wider setting
  • Any change of use would preserve its character as a building of special architectural or historic interest and ensure its continued use/viability.

Applications involving the demolition of a Listed Building will only be granted in wholly exceptional circumstances.

Conservation Areas

Within Conservation Areas development will only be permitted if the proposal:

  • Is of a design and scale that preserves or enhances the character or appearance of the area
  • Uses building materials, finishes, including those for features such as walls, railings, gates and hard surfacing, that are appropriate to the local context
  • Retains historically significant boundaries, important open spaces and other elements of the area’s established pattern of development, character and historic value, including gardens, roadside banks and verges
  • Retains and restores, where relevant, traditional features such as shop fronts, walls, railings, paved surfaces and street furniture, and improves the condition of structures worthy of retention
  • Does not harm important views into, out of or within the Conservation area
  • Protects trees, hedgerows and other significant landscape features and incorporates landscaping appropriate to the character and appearance of the Conservation Area
  • Results, where relevant, in the removal of unsympathetic features and the restoration or reinstatement of missing features.

Within Conservation Areas permission for development involving demolition or substantial demolition will only be granted if it can be demonstrated that:

  • The structure to be demolished makes no material contribution to the special character or appearance of the area; or,
  • It can be demonstrated that the structure is wholly beyond repair or incapable of beneficial use; or
  • It can be demonstrated that the removal of the structure and its subsequent replacement with a new building and/or open space would lead to the enhancement of the Conservation Area.

The Council will not normally grant consent for the demolition of a building in a Conservation Area unless permission has been granted for redevelopment of the site.

Permission will not be granted for development outside but near to a Conservation Area if it adversely affects the setting, character, appearance of or views in to or out of that Conservation Area.

The Council will only permit development proposals including solutions to shop front security and/or use of standardised shop front designs, fascias or advertisement displays in a Conservation Area if they:

  • Are sympathetic to the character and appearance of the Conservation Area;
  • Respect the scale, proportions, character and materials of construction of the upper part of the building and adjoining buildings and the street scene in general;
  • Incorporate traditional materials where the age and character of the building makes this appropriate.

Generally, totally internally illuminated fascias or projecting signs will not be permitted. The Council will also not support applications for additional signs that would result in a proliferation of, and excess amount of, advertisement material on any individual building or group of buildings.

Locally Important Buildings

The Council encourages the retention of Locally Important Buildings. Where planning permission is required for the alteration or extension of a Locally Important Building, permission will only be granted where historic or architectural features are retained or enhanced.

Historic Parks and Gardens

Planning permission will not be granted for proposals that would cause unacceptable harm to historic parks or gardens (both registered and unregistered), their settings or public views into, out of, or within them. Applicants are required to submit a Historic Landscape Assessment prior to the determination of the application. This may include an archaeological assessment if located within an area of archaeological importance.

Archaeology

Where an application site includes, or is considered to have the potential to include, heritage assets with archaeological interest, it must be accompanied by an appropriate desk-based assessment and, where desk-based research is insufficient to properly assess the interest, a field evaluation. There is a presumption against any harm to Scheduled Monuments and heritage assets with archaeological interest that are demonstrably of equivalent significance to Scheduled Monuments. Where the loss of the whole or a material part of a heritage asset’s significance (archaeological interest) is justified, planning conditions will be included in any permission to ensure that an adequate record is made of the significance of the heritage asset before it is lost. This will be secured through an archaeological written scheme of investigation (WSI) which must include provision for appropriate publication of the evidence.

For more information please see the Three Rivers Development Management Policies DPD