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English Heritage drive to 'save our suburbs'
By Charles Clover, Environment Editor
Last Updated: 2:35am GMT 20/03/2007
Councils should work harder to preserve the character of the suburbs, where more than eight out of 10 people live, English Heritage said yesterday.
The Government's conservation advisers said special historical and architectural character was at risk of being eroded by insensitive developments, such as "garden grabbing" to build blocks of flats.
Other threats include plastic windows, inappropriately designed extensions and the conversion of front gardens to car parking.
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The Greater London Assembly estimates that two thirds of the capital's front gardens have been converted for parking, reducing wildlife habitat and increasing water run-off.
English Heritage said that small-scale piecemeal change could erode the local character and distinctiveness of an area, even though this is often the main reason why people choose to live where they do.
Simon Thurley, the chief executive of English Heritage, said: "Higher density living is a good idea but it can have unintended consequences.
"Some of our best-loved suburbs are blighted by ill-planned incremental changes and inappropriate development.
"I don't believe that heritage is somewhere you visit, like going to a stately home. It is all around us, it is where we live. And for very many of us that is a suburb.
"Change won't go away but we can work together to drive it towards the values and goals we believe in, enhancing local character and adding to the best of what is already there."
With this in mind, English Heritage has published a guide, Suburbs and the Historic Environment, intended to give residents and their councils ways of protecting the character of suburbs, which are not always listed and therefore do not come under legislation that English Heritage can enforce directly.
It gives the example of Wycombe and Solihull councils, which used a mechanism called a supplementary planning document to set guidelines about aspects of design and location that have to be given special consideration.
In both these cases, they have used planning rules to keep the large gardens that give character to the area.
Wycombe district council has had a large number of planning applications to demolish single dwellings in suburban streets to create access to rear gardens where new houses have been constructed and this has changed the character of the area.
More poor quality cul-de-sacs have been created while the access roads have an impact on the character and appearance of the original street, said English Heritage.
It called on councils to undertake a thorough analysis of what makes suburbs special and urged them to designate more conservation areas and to use the controls they provide to make sure that developments conform to this policy.
Link to article
English Heritage drive to 'save our suburbs'
By Charles Clover, Environment Editor
Last Updated: 2:35am GMT 20/03/2007
Councils should work harder to preserve the character of the suburbs, where more than eight out of 10 people live, English Heritage said yesterday.
The Government's conservation advisers said special historical and architectural character was at risk of being eroded by insensitive developments, such as "garden grabbing" to build blocks of flats.
Other threats include plastic windows, inappropriately designed extensions and the conversion of front gardens to car parking.
advertisement
The Greater London Assembly estimates that two thirds of the capital's front gardens have been converted for parking, reducing wildlife habitat and increasing water run-off.
English Heritage said that small-scale piecemeal change could erode the local character and distinctiveness of an area, even though this is often the main reason why people choose to live where they do.
Simon Thurley, the chief executive of English Heritage, said: "Higher density living is a good idea but it can have unintended consequences.
"Some of our best-loved suburbs are blighted by ill-planned incremental changes and inappropriate development.
"I don't believe that heritage is somewhere you visit, like going to a stately home. It is all around us, it is where we live. And for very many of us that is a suburb.
"Change won't go away but we can work together to drive it towards the values and goals we believe in, enhancing local character and adding to the best of what is already there."
With this in mind, English Heritage has published a guide, Suburbs and the Historic Environment, intended to give residents and their councils ways of protecting the character of suburbs, which are not always listed and therefore do not come under legislation that English Heritage can enforce directly.
It gives the example of Wycombe and Solihull councils, which used a mechanism called a supplementary planning document to set guidelines about aspects of design and location that have to be given special consideration.
In both these cases, they have used planning rules to keep the large gardens that give character to the area.
Wycombe district council has had a large number of planning applications to demolish single dwellings in suburban streets to create access to rear gardens where new houses have been constructed and this has changed the character of the area.
More poor quality cul-de-sacs have been created while the access roads have an impact on the character and appearance of the original street, said English Heritage.
It called on councils to undertake a thorough analysis of what makes suburbs special and urged them to designate more conservation areas and to use the controls they provide to make sure that developments conform to this policy.