Local Heritage and Planning Policy“It’s the Development Plan Stupid!”

Pete Boland

Policy Framework

Black Country Core Strategy

Dudley Local Development Framework

Development Strategy Development Plan Document

Halesowen Area Action Plan

Brierley Hill Area Action Plan

Stourbridge Area Action Plan

Black Country Core Strategy

ENV2: Historic Character and Local Distinctiveness Policy

“All development should aim to protect and promote the special qualities,historic character and local distinctiveness of the Black Country in order to helpmaintain its cultural identity and strong sense of place. Development proposals

will be required to preserve and, where appropriate, enhance local character and those aspects of the historic environment together with their

settings which are recognised as being of special historic, archaeological, architectural, landscape or townscape quality.”

ENV2: Historic Character and Local Distinctiveness (Cont..)“All proposals should aim to sustain and reinforce special character and conserve the historic aspects of the followinglocally distinctive elements of the Black Country:

a) The network of now coalesced but nevertheless distinct small industrial settlements of the former South Staffordshire Coalfield, such as Darlaston & Netherton;

b) The civic, religious and commercial cores of the principal settlements of medieval origin such as Wolverhampton, Dudley, Wednesbury & Walsall;

c) Surviving pre-industrial settlement centres of medieval origin such as Tettenhall, Aldridge, Oldbury and Kingswinford;

d) Areas of Victorian and Edwardian higher density development which survive with a high degree of integrity including terraced housing and its associated amenities;

e) Areas of extensive lower density suburban development of the mid 20th century including public housing and private developments of semi-detached and detached housing;

f) Public open spaces, including Victorian and Edwardian municipal parks, often created upon and retaining elements of relict industrial landscape features;

g) The canal network and its associated infrastructure, surviving canal-side pre-1939 buildings and structures together with archaeological evidence of the development of canal-side industries and former canal routes (see also Policy ENV4);

h) Buildings, structures and archaeological remains of the traditional manufacturing and extractive industries of the Black Country including glass making, metal trades (such as lock making), manufacture of leather goods, brick making, coal mining and limestone quarrying;

i) The Beacons”

ENV2: Historic Character and Local Distinctiveness (Cont..)

“In addition to statutorily designated and protected historic assets particular attention should be paid tothe preservation and enhancement of:

• locally listed historic buildings and archaeological sites;• historic parks and gardens including their settings;• locally designated special landscape areas and other heritage based site allocations.

Development proposals that would potentially have an impact on any of the above distinctive elementsshould be supported by evidence included in Design and Access Statements which demonstrates that allaspects of the historic character and distinctiveness of the locality have been fully assessed andused to inform proposals. In some instances local authorities may require developers to undertake detailed Historic Landscape Characterisation studies to support their proposals.”

Dudley Metropolitan BoroughAn overarching conservation strategy required

• Need to understand more comprehensively what local distinctiveness is

• Move away from individual heritage assets – what makes areas locally distinctive

• Area based concept – areas designated as a means of protection

• A fresh look using Historic Characterisation to identify areas worthy of a local designation.

Detailed Historic Characterisation

•Brierley Hill UHLC (evidence base for Brierley Hill AAP)

•Glass Quarter UHLC (evidence base for Glass Quarter SPD)

•Stourbridge UHLC (evidence base for Stourbridge AAP)

•Emerging Halesowen UHLC (evidence base for Halesowen AAP)

• Detailed Survey Work Depicted in Overview• Identification of Areas of High Historic Townscape

Value (AHHTV).

Proposed ‘AHHTV’ -Areas of High Historic Townscape Value

Proposed ‘APA’ –Archaeological Priority Area

Proposed ‘AHHLV’ -Areas of High Historic Landscape Value

BCS Regeneration CorridorsExtensive Characterisation/Appraisal

• HER used for: Plotting Heritage

Assets Identifying APA’s

• Black Country HLC- identified potentially

significant townscape & landscape

• Focused Survey identifies- character areas; Conservation Area &

Listing potential; AHHTV; AHHLV,

AHHDLV; Threats; Opportunities.

“Light Touch” Historic Characterisation

The Borough-wide Historic Landscape Survey

Axis Layer – ‘htv’

Extensive Historic Characterisation - North

Legend

Areas of High Historic Townscape Value

Conservation Area

Areas of High Historic Landscape Value

Area of Special Townscape Value

Areas of High Historic Designed Landscape Value

Designation Framework

Statutory List Conservation Areas

Scheduled Ancient

Monuments

RegisteredParks & Gardens

Locally Listed Buildings

Areas of High Historic

Townscape Value (AHHTV)

Areas of High Historic

Designed Landscape

Value (AHHDLV)

Archaeological Priority Areas

(APA)

Areas of High

Historic Landscape

Value (AHHLV)

Development Plan Policies

Halesowen Area Action Plan – Policy 24

Suggested Policy - Conservation and Enhancement of Local Character and Distinctiveness inHalesowen • All development proposals should take account of the locally distinctive character of the area in which

they are to be sited, including its historic character, and should respect and respond to its positive attributes. Physical assets (buildings, sites or areas together with their settings) whether man made or natural that positively contribute to the local character and distinctiveness of Halesowen’s landscape and townscape should be retained and wherever possible enhanced and their settings be respected.

• The Halesowen Urban Historic Landscape Characterisation (UHLC) has mapped out for each identified character zone various buildings and spaces and assigned a degree of significance to them based upon the contribution they make to the overall character of the historic environment. This includes Locally Listed Buildings that are felt to make a particularly special contribution to local character. The Halesowen UHLC document, therefore, provides baseline data that in conjunction with the information held in Dudley Council’s Historic Buildings Sites and Monuments Record must be used for land use appraisals and to inform proposals for development.

• New development in Halesowen should be designed so as to reinforce and enhance local distinctiveness and full reference should be made in Design and Access Statements accompanying planning applications to the Halesowen Urban Historic Landscape Characterisation. Design and Access Statements should clearly set out the steps that have been taken to achieve locally responsive outcomes through either traditional or more contemporary design solutions.

Suggested Policy - Areas of High Historic Townscape Value (AHHTV) (Halesowen AAP)

• Areas of High Historic Townscape Value (AHHTV) are recognised in the Halesowen Urban Historic Landscape Characterisation (UHLC) as defining discrete areas of townscape of acknowledged importance. Where new development is proposed in an AHHTV every effort must be made to ensure it consolidates or enhances the existing positive characteristics of the locality including the public realm. Not only should existing townscape in these areas be conserved and enhanced but the opportunity should be taken to create complementary good quality townscape through extension, new build or redevelopment. Views into, out of and within the AHHTV must be respected.

• Design and Access Statements accompanying planning applications in AHHTV’s must be prepared with full reference to the Halesowen UHLC and must clearly evidence how the proposal has taken account of its detailed findings in order to produce a locally responsive high quality design that, wherever appropriate, also conserves and where possible enhances significant historic assets together with their settings. Proposals that fail to respond adequately to their townscape context or that would prejudice views into, out of or within AHHTV’s will not be permitted.

Halesowen Area Action Plan – Policy 26

Suggested Policy - Areas of High Historic Landscape Value (AHHLV)

• Within Areas of High Historic Landscape Value, Dudley Council will resist any development or other works taking place which would be detrimental to the character, quality and historic integrity of the landscape. Dudley Council will seek to protect and enhance views into, from or within Areas of High Historic Landscape Value. Approval will not be given where such views would be unduly interrupted or harmed, or where the opportunity to enhance such a view would be lost.

Halesowen Area Action Plan – Policy 27

Suggested Policy - Designed Landscapes of High Historic Value (DLHHV)

• Designed Landscapes of High Historic Value will be preserved and wherever possible enhanced and Dudley Council will resist any development or other works taking place which would be detrimental to the setting, character, quality and historic integrity of the landscape including detailed design features and individual historic components whether man made or natural.

• Pic to illustrate

Halesowen Area Action Plan – Policy 28

Suggested Policy - Archaeological Priority Areas (APA)

Archaeological Priority Areas have been identified in the Halesowen Urban Historic Landscape Characterisation and in respect of these and any other areas of potential archaeological significance that may be identified and included in the Dudley Council Historic Buildings Sites and Monuments Record through the life of the plan, Dudley Council will:

•Expect developers as part of any planning application to provide adequate information to allow the full and proper consideration of the impact of the proposed development on archaeological remains through desk top archaeological appraisal and as Dudley Council deems appropriate subsequent physical site evaluation/building recording.

•Resist development that would have a damaging impact upon significant archaeological remains and where potentially negative impacts have been identified expect developers to devise and put forward for agreement suitable measures designed to mitigate such impact in order to preserve buildings, structures or buried deposits in situ.

•Where preservation in situ would be unreasonable seek to ensure that provision is made for an appropriate level of archaeological investigation and recording of any building, structure or buried deposit of interest prior to the commencement of development, site clearance or infrastructure works and for appropriate publication of the results.

Policy into Practice

Two Positive Appeal Decisions

The Dudley Borough Landscape and Townscape Character Study

Foxcote Farm, Oldnall Road, Stourbridge

App/C5615/D/11/2160416

• “The farmhouse at Foxcote Farm is of local historic importance, recorded on the Council’s HER and the surroundings are part of a designated Landscape Heritage Area in the Unitary Development Plan (2005) (UDP).

• As was evident from the site visit, the farm complex, with the main house at its heart, is a significant, historic feature in the local landscape, particularly as seen from Oldnall Road.’

• The building is not statutorily or locally listed or in a conservation area, but even so, alterations or extensions to it should respect its character and be sympathetic to its appearance.

• ….the proposal would conflict with UDP Policy DD1 and ENV2 of the Black Country Core Strategy (2011), which seek to ensure that new development makes a positive contribution to an areas character and appearance and that the special qualities, historic character and local distinctiveness of the Black Country are protected and promoted’.