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What makes Peterborough City Centre a ‘conservation area'?
- 1. What makes PeterboroughCity Centre a ‘Conservation Area’? Joanna Burton Consultant, Beacon Planning
- 2. What is aconservation area? First introduced in 1967. Designated under Section 69 and 70 of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990. Part 1 of this act requires that every local authority: “ shall from time to time determine which parts of their area are areas of special architectural or historic interest the character or appearance of which it is desirable to preserve or enhance ”
- 3. Where are conservationareas? Any areas that have been identified to be of special architectural or historic interest. Town and city centres Rural villages and hamlets Historic associations with a particular industry or event e.g. mining, fishing, philanthropist model villages Homogenous in date and chronology e.g. C19 suburbs Exceptional public realm or quality of open spaces Individual heritage assets e.g. country estates 8,000+ designated conservation areas in England
- 4. Peterborough conservation areasPeterborough has 29 designated conservation areas:
- 5. How are theydesignated? Appraisal led process Identify the broad area to assess Appraise the special historic and/or architectural interest Make a recommendation Public consultation exercise Designate boundaries Adopt Conservation Area Appraisal and Management Plan Review
- 6. Special historic interestHistoric map analysis Archival research Historic photographs Peterborough, 1610 Cathedral Square, 1795 Church Street, 1906
- 7. Special architectural interestStatutory listed buildings Buildings of local interest Buildings of townscape merit Architectural groupings Palette of materials Scale and massing Unique characteristics Local distinctiveness Landmarks Views and vistas Public realm Trees
- 8. Guidance Guidance library: www.helm.org.uk Published in 2011 by English Heritage to replace Guidance on conservation area appraisals and Guidance on the management of conservation areas.
- 9. So why PeterboroughCity Centre? First designated in June 1969 to cover the whole of the city centre including the cathedral precincts, Cowgate, Priestgate, Westgate and Bridge Street. One of the first of the 29 conservation areas located within the Peterborough City Council administrative area. Designated at the outset of the City’s expansion under the New Towns Act.
- 10. Special historic interestPre-historic - fen edge settlements and along River Nene e.g. Flag Fen Roman - network of forts e.g. Longthorpe, Ferry Meadows, although - little significant evidence of Roman activity in modern day Peterborough City Centre - Roman town of Durobrivae abandoned by 5 th century Medieval - Mid-Saxon period a monastery was established at Medeshamstede, the Anglo-Saxon name for Peterborough - Late-Saxon period Medeshamstede started to be referred to as Burgh - City ransacked 1069 by Danish fleet - C12 abbey precincts extended and new town founded to the west of the cathedral – modern day city centre - new town bridge 1307
- 11. Special historic interestPost-Medieval - after the Reformation abbey church designated a cathedral and town gains city status - period of limited expansion although restoration brought a wave of new building including the Guildhall, erected 1669 C18 - not a period of expansion with the exception of new buildings along Westgate - buildings within the medieval town re-built and re-fronted, including those around Cathedral Square C19 - period of rapid expansion, catalysed by the arrival of the railway in 1845 - new areas of expansion, particularly along Cowgate as well as extensive replacement of earlier buildings within the city C20 - first half of the C20 bought the first comprehensive redevelopments such as the Town Hall and Westgate Arcade - late 1970s/ early 1980s brought new town status and a major re- planning undertaken by the Development Corporation
- 12. Special architectural interestCharacter areas Bridge Street/Long Causeway 2. Cowgate 3. Priestgate 4. Westgate 5. Cathedral Precincts © Crown copyright. All rights reserved (100024236) 2011
- 13. Character area 1Bridge Street/Long Causeway - City centre core including principal commercial streets, key public open spaces and imposing civic buildings. - Follows the earlier medieval street alignment but is largely C19 character with C20 redevelopments including the landmark 1930s Town Hall. - Green north-south axis along Bridge Street and Long Causeway which meets the stone east-west axis along Cowgate and Church Street, including the public open spaces of Cathedral Square. - Animated pedestrianised spaces with lively street activities and high levels of footfall. © Crown copyright. All rights reserved (100024236) 2011
- 14. Character area 1Bridge Street/Long Causeway
- 15. Character area 2Cowgate Commercial in character with smaller units than Character Area 1. Smaller scale 3 storey brick development with some landmark stone buildings. - C19 detailing surviving at first floor and above, with some console brackets surviving at ground floor level. © Crown copyright. All rights reserved (100024236) 2011
- 16. Character area 2Cowgate
- 17. Character area 3Priestgate Quiet, enclosed space with a varied but coherent built form with a human-scale Predominantly office use as opposed to retail C18 and C19 in character with strong use of stone - Key views to the Former Presbyterian Church and Town Hall © Crown copyright. All rights reserved (100024236) 2011
- 18. Character area 3Priestgate
- 19. Character area 4 Westgate Strong C19 and C20 character that is more domestic in scale created by the dominance of brick and slate and Victorian architectural detailing, with the notable exception of the late C18 The Bull Hotel Commercial and entertainment uses Shared space by both pedestrians and vehicles Dominated by the built environment and Highways, with few green spaces or trees - Many enhancement opportunities as a result of a number of poor C20 developments and under-use
- 20. Character area 4 Westgate
- 21. Character area 5Cathedral Precincts Good survival of medieval buildings with stone and collyweston slates the dominant building materials. Key open green spaces both within and outside of the Precincts. Key views to the west front and towers from within the character area. Ecclesiastical use
- 22. Character area 5Cathedral Precincts
- 23. What does itmean? Demolition: Any demolition within a Conservation Area, aside from demolition for which there is specific statutory exemption, requires Conservation Area Consent granted by the relevant planning authority. Demolition without consent is a criminal offence. There is a presumption in favour of retaining those buildings that have been identified to make a positive contribution to the special interest of such areas. Scrutiny: Planning applications will be judged in part on their impact on the character and appearance of the conservation area and/or its settings, with a requirement to preserve or enhance the special architectural or historic interest. This will most often necessitate high quality design and materials. English Heritage is invited to comment on development proposals that are considered to affect the character or appearance of a conservation area, or where a material change of use is proposed – in both instances where the application site is over 1,000 square metres . Trees: Proposals to cut down, top or lop a tree in a Conservation Area must notify the local planning authority to give them the opportunity to assess the contribution that the tree makes to the character of the area and protect it if necessary using a Tree Preservation Order.
- 24. What does itmean? Permitted development rights: The rights that owners have to do works to their properties without planning permission are reduced, and can be further restricted through the use of an Article 4 Direction. This includes applying certain types of cladding, inserting dormer windows, and erecting satellite dishes that can be seen from the highway. Article 4(2) Direction: Local planning authorities may increase the controls on other alterations, such as replacing windows and doors, painting a building a different colour, or replacing/altering other features that contribute to the significance of the conservation area. These must be supported by a strong justification and local planning authorities must take into account the views of local people before doing so. Planning policy: Most local planning authorities will have local plan policies to guide development within conservation areas. The conservation area appraisal and management plans are often adopted as supplementary planning guidance.
- 25. What does itmean? - Planning authorities, when deciding whether to grant planning permission within Conservation Areas, are required by law to pay special attention to the need to preserve or enhance - Local planning authorities should take into account the desirability of sustaining and enhancing the significance of heritage assets – HE7.4 PPS5 - There should be a presumption in favour of the conservation of designated heritage assets – HE9.1 PPS5
- 26.
Editor's Notes
- #3 To be able to understand why Peterborough City Centre is a conservation area we first need to understand what conservation areas are. Conservation areas were first introduced in 1967 Part 1 of this act requires that every local authority: (a) shall from time to time determine which parts of their area are areas of special architectural or historic interest the character or appearance of which it is desirable to preserve or enhance , and (b) shall designate those areas as conservation areas. Stamford just up the road is said to be the first conservation area to be designated.
- #4 Might be linked to a high number of nationally designated heritage assets and a variety of architectural styles and historic associations. This is most often likely to be the case in our historic towns and cities Others may be more homogenous linked to a particular industry or event, or may have particular local interests such as fishing and mining villages and model housing estates such as at Stewartby brickworks in Bedfordshire. Others may be homogenous in date and style and have a chronological connection, such as suburbs of note, such as Broadway? The Park Road conservation area here in Peterborough. Others may be discrete historic assets such as country houses and their associated service and garden buildings and parkland, such as Wrest Park in Bedfordshire. Others can be designated for their exceptional public realm, open spaces and historic landscapes. Plus more reasons!
- #5 There are 29 conservation areas across Peterborough and the city council has recently undertaken a number of conservation area appraisals
- #7 So how do we assess special historic interest? A key element is first to understand the chronological development of the area, how it has developed over time. Conservation areas can be designated for having complex and multi-phase histories such as Peterborough City Centre, or alternatively can be significant for comprising a homogenous development built as a set piece or over a short space of time, such as C19 Victorian suburbs. We would look back through the old historic maps to understand this chronological development and to see how this has shaped the current form of the area. In Peterborough for example, this map by John Speed in 1610 clearly shows how the modern spatial layout follows the medieval pattern of Bridge Street, Cowgate, Prestgate and Westgate. Later OS maps are another critical source of evidence and often reveal hsitoric layouts, with those C19 maps of Priestgate showing the courtyard developments behind the frontages and the surviving medieval purgage plots along Bridge Street stretching towards the river. We would also visit the archives to see what other primary and secondary sources shed light on the historic interest, with this painting by Nathan Fielding of Market Square in 1795 demonstrating how other media can inform our understanding of the past. Historic photographs where they survive are another very useful resource, with this one looking east along Church Street taken in 1906.
- #8 Special architectural interest is related much more to the visual form of the environment rather than its historic development or as asociations. When assessing special architectural interest, we would look at things such as how many of the buildings are listed, is there a critical mass of buildings of national significance set within a context that is worthy of conservation area designation? If not nationally listed, is there a concentration of buildings that have been identified to be of local importance? Or is there a group of buildings that are considered to make an important significant contribution to the quality of the townscape or streetscene?
- #11 Peterborough has a rich and exciting history that has shaped the form and character of the modern day city centre which owes its layout to the medieval period and with the obvious prevailing character of the medieval cathedral landmark. It is this long and varied history and its manifestation in the current built form of the city centre that lends the conservation area special historic interest. Pre-historic The combination of wetlands, woodlands and floodplain meadows presented a rich variety of habitats for the flora and fauna on which hunter-gatherer peoples depended and presented the resources for early settlers to construct houses, graze stock, plant crops and gather fish and fowl and other resources. It is known that these early settlements existed at the fen edge and all along the River Nene and Welland valleys. During the Neolithic and Bronze Age periods, huge monuments were formed in the landscape, for example, in Maxey to the north and Whittlesey to the south. The Bronze Age landscape at Flag Fen to the east of the City Centre is a visible testament to the prehistoric populations that inhabited the area. Roman Following the military conquest illustrated by the forts at Longthorpe, Ferry Meadows and south of Castor, the Nene Valley saw the proliferation of towns like Durobrivae near Waternewton. Villas and industrial sites specialised in pottery making and iron working. The River Nene, Ermine Street – which ran from London to York partly on the line of the former Great North Road/A1 – and Kings Street formed the main communication and trade routes, together with the Fen Causeway between Flag Fen, east of Peterborough. There is further evidence of Roman settlements to the west of the city and south of the river. During the Roman period the fens continued to grow wetter but were still exploited for salt production, livestock rearing, and meat processing for the Roman troops garrisoned in Britain and on the Continent. By the C5 however the Roman town had been abandoned. The present city is located some 3-4 miles east of Roman Durobrivae, with little historical evidence of significant Roman activity in modern day Peterborough City Centre. Saxon Peterborough Anglo-Saxon communities flourished around Peterborough leaving a lasting legacy of stone craftsmanship. In the Middle Saxon period (AD 650-850) a monastery was established on the site of the present Cathedral Church of St Peter. The foundation date of the original monastery is uncertain, although The Venerable Bede (AD 673-735) in his History of the English Church suggests a date around the mid-C7. The monastery continued as a successful house into the Late Saxon period (AD 850-1066). This is the time when the early church and some of its associated buildings were enclosed by a set of defenses and the town started to be referred to as Burgh . Remains of the late C10 burh wall were found in the early 1980s next to the precinct wall in the area behind Peterscourt, Midgate. The nearby Tout Hill was erected as a defensive structure during the rule of Turold, a Norman appointed by William the Conqueror as Abbot sometime between (1069/70-1098). Central- late Medieval Peterborough After the Norman Conquest of 1066, the town’s fenland location and proximity to the east coast made it a target for English resistance to Norman rule and Danish raids and in 1069 the city was ransacked by the Danish fleet. A period of decline and partial abandonment followed until the mid-C12 century when abbott Martin de Bec extended the abbey precincts westwards and also planned a new town marking the founding of the current city centre. Cathedral Square, Bridge Street and Long Causeway were all established at this time and the town was extended to exploit the river with the contruction of wharves and a new bridge in 1307. By this time, the city included Cumbergate Priestgate, Westgate Midgate and City Road and settlement was extending along Cowgate and Lincoln Road.
- #12 Post-medieval Throughout the Tudor period, Peterborough continued to flourish, but the road pattern and extent of the urban area appears to have remained fairly static. After the dissolution of the Abbey at the Reformation the Abbey Church became designated as a cathedral. It was during this period that the settlement was granted city status. The first half of the C17 century was a period of uncertainty and, according to John Speed's map of 1610, the city had not expanded beyond its medieval origins. The stability that followed the restoration brought a new wave of building, and in 1669 the Guildhall was erected by public subscription as the first seat of local government in the city. The multiple shocks of the Reformation, Civil War and plague of 1666 however took their toll on the townsfolk of Peterborough and the city took into the next century to recover. C18 Until 1700, Peterborough's street pattern set out in the C12 Norman re-planning remained intact and the city had not expanded beyond these original streets. The city had an agricultural hinterland, with farms, fields and orchards occupying the land beyond the city core. An exception to this was the expansion of the city along Westgate where a number of Georgian buildings survive, including The Bull Hotel and Royal Hotel. A number of buildings within the medieval city were rebuilt or refronted as shown by Nathan Fielding’s painting of Market Square in 1795. Peterborough was a stone city, the only building materials were dressed Barnack ragstone for important buildings; rubble or timber frame and lime render for others, with Collyweston, thatch or oak shingle roofs. C19 By 1900, the original street pattern survived but the coming of the railways in 1845 brought unparalleled expansion with new development in mass produced brick and Welsh slate buildings encircling the historic city core. The investment brought by the railways stimulated new development and photographs of the city in 1900 clearly show substantial numbers of buildings constructed from about 1860. The city streets were paved with granite setts and more than half the old frontage buildings were replaced or re-fronted by Victorian redevelopments. The present character of the south side of Cowgate largely derives from this period, and on the north side the earlier buildings were cleared to make way for the Queen Street Iron Works. Individual buildings such as Market Chambers on Cathedral Square, which was constructed as the city's first department store, replaced structures from the C18 whilst remaining open spaces were rapidly filled with new buildings such as the former courthouse on Laxton Square. C20 The first half of the C20 bought the first comprehensive redevelopments such as the Town Hall and Westgate Arcade. These redevelopments were often built using local stone incorporating classical design and detailing. The streets began to be adapted to accommodate the motorcar, with the construction of a new Town bridge and covering of the Victorian setts with tarmac. The late 1970s and early 1980s brought a major re-planning of the city centre transport infrastructure undertaken by the Development Corporation as part of the New Town expansion. For the first time, the link between the city and the river was severed by the installation of the inner city ring road – Bourges Boulevard. The Queensgate shopping centre was superimposed into the historic fabric of the city, oblitering historic buildings and streets such as Cumbergate within its footprint. Many developments from this period have taken on architectural forms and used materials that have no special relationship with the city's built form.
- #13 When it comes to the special architectural interest, Peterborough City Centre is a large and complex area, displaying a multitude of different characteristics and features and dating from a variety of different phases of construction and development. Over such a rich area, it can be helpful to try to tease out the differences in character across the whole conservation area. To try to do this, we have divided the city centre into a number of discrete areas according to the type of development, any particular characteristics, building materials, uses as well as its chronological development. You can see here that the main commercial and civic spaces of Long Causeway and Bridge Street and Cathedral Square forms one character area following the medieval street pattern. Cowgate forms another discrete area, and Priestgate to the south a third which was considered to be different again from Cowgate in terms of its uses, building type and spatial organisation. Westgate forms a larger area to the north and is more disparate than Cowgate and Priestgate, made up from the commercial street of Westgate with smaller secondary roads to the north, and the Cathedral Precincts and Memorial Gardens constitutes the fifth. This is an inexact science, the aim really is to create character areas that hang together, to allow a closer analysis of the special interest in larger conservation areas that are not uniform throughout. There will likely be elements that do not always fit each character area, but the aim is to try to create groupings that share particular characteristics.
- #14 So what are the special architectural characteristics of the different character areas? Bridge Street, Long Causeway and Cathedral Square have been characterised as follows:
- #15 If we think back to those elements that we look at to assess special architectural interest we can begin to see how Peterborough City Centre displays this special architectural interest and I have picked out some key examples identified for each character area. Character area 1 we can see has a number of listed buildings with the Guildhall, Church we’re in today, and other buildings enclosing Cathedral Square. It also has a high number of buildings of local importance which tells us immediately that this is an area of high townscape merit with buildings of high architectural and historic value. Several of these buildings form key landmarks, with the 1930s town hall, 1669 Guildhall and Market Chambers to name a few. Some of these buildings works together to form important set pieces, with perhaps the most significant being the successive view of the ecclesiastical buildings looking west along the Church of St John the Baptist to the Great Gateway and West Front of the cathedral beyond. Cathedral Square has a clear stone axis, extending westwards towards the cathedral with the aforementioned church, Norman gateway and catehdral, and this is also amplified by the new york stone paving to the square. This forms an exciting contrast with the green axis extending northsouth along Bridge Street and Long Casueway which have a very different character. The impressive civic open space of Cathedral Square gives way to enclosed linear streets dominated by the trees which give it a very different feel. The building heights are generally three storeys and sit tight to the back if the pavement. The primary use is commercial, with a strong ecclesiastical presence which creates an interesting mix of secular and ecclesiastical buildings.
- #16 Although commercial in use, Cowgate has a very different character with smaller scale buildings, narrower street width and more domestic detailing which gives it a sense of being a peripheral shopping street leading out from the city centre. The area fits between the civic spaces to the east and Priestgate to the south.
- #17 It is predominantly C19 in date and has always had a strong retail function as shown in this photograph. In fact some elements of the shop fronts survive with console brackets existing on some of the modern shop fronts. The stone and civic character of Cathedral Square has been replaced by brick and slate, characteristic of C19 development across the country, and the scale is more modest with domestic scale and character detailing to the upper floors which adds to the feeling of being on the periphery of the commercial core. The buildings are relatively homogenous in scale and use of materials on the south side, however modern development has significantly altered the north side to the detriment of the special interest. Landmark buildings are therefore few, with the street instead characterised by its uniformity, with the exception of the building on the corner of Cowgate and Cross Street, now Prezzo, which really acts as a marker to signal the arrival into the heart of the city centre as you move from Cowgate into Cathedral Square. The street is not pedestrianised and the busy pavement and servicing activities has not left room for street trees to give any greening effect.
- #18 Priestgate has a very different character again from Cowgate, being much quieter, calmer and more intimate. The Victorian character of Cowgate is replaced by a Georgian character, with buildings of stone and
- #19 The Victorian character of Cowgate is replaced by a Georgian character, with buildings of stone and brick with typically georgian proportions. The former Prebyterian church forms a major landmark in views along the street in both directions, as well as views south along Cross Street from the top of Cowgate. The Museum is another landmark building, but the trees to the front reduce its visibility within the street scene with views gained as you come upon the building. The trees make a strong contribution to this western end of Priestgate, softening the strong built forms of the brick and stone 2 buildings. The street has a particularly homogenous character, using a similar palette of materials, forms and massing, although this does begin to break up as you move towards the ends of the street. Incidental views are gained to the portico of the town hall which is of a different and impressive scale, and serves to reinforce the intimate scale of Priestgate. Professional services
- #24 In practice, this means that any planning application within a Conservation Area will receive additional scrutiny to establish whether the nature of the proposed development would at least complement and if possible enhance the area’s special qualities. There are also some additional planning controls over demolition, minor works and the protection of trees within Conservation Areas: Demolition: There are specific controls over the demolition of buildings in Conservation Areas, and a presumption in favour of retaining buildings that make positive contributions to the character or appearance of such areas. Any demolition within a Conservation Area, other than demolition for which there is specific statutory exemption, must be authorised by a prior grant of Conservation Area Consent by the relevant District Council. Demolition without consent is a criminal offence. Minor developments: Within all Conservation Areas, planning permission must be obtained from the District Council before making some of the minor alterations to buildings that would not normally be subject to planning control elsewhere. Such alterations include applying certain types of cladding, inserting dormer windows, and erecting satellite dishes which are visible from the street. District Councils may also choose to place restrictions on other alterations, such as painting a house a different colour, or changing distinctive front doors, windows, or other architectural features. The District Council must have a good reason for making these restrictions, and must take account of views of local people before doing so. Trees: Trees make an important contribution to the character of the local environment and are important features of many Conservation Areas. Anyone proposing to cut down, top or lop a tree in a Conservation Area, whether or not it is covered by a tree preservation order, must give notice to the District Council. The District Council can then consider the contribution the tree makes to the character of the area and if necessary make a Tree Preservation Order to protect it. preserve the character or appearance of such areas.
- #25 In practice, this means that any planning application within a Conservation Area will receive additional scrutiny to establish whether the nature of the proposed development would at least complement and if possible enhance the area’s special qualities. There are also some additional planning controls over demolition, minor works and the protection of trees within Conservation Areas: Demolition: There are specific controls over the demolition of buildings in Conservation Areas, and a presumption in favour of retaining buildings that make positive contributions to the character or appearance of such areas. Any demolition within a Conservation Area, other than demolition for which there is specific statutory exemption, must be authorised by a prior grant of Conservation Area Consent by the relevant District Council. Demolition without consent is a criminal offence. Minor developments: Within all Conservation Areas, planning permission must be obtained from the District Council before making some of the minor alterations to buildings that would not normally be subject to planning control elsewhere. Such alterations include applying certain types of cladding, inserting dormer windows, and erecting satellite dishes which are visible from the street. District Councils may also choose to place restrictions on other alterations, such as painting a house a different colour, or changing distinctive front doors, windows, or other architectural features. The District Council must have a good reason for making these restrictions, and must take account of views of local people before doing so. Trees: Trees make an important contribution to the character of the local environment and are important features of many Conservation Areas. Anyone proposing to cut down, top or lop a tree in a Conservation Area, whether or not it is covered by a tree preservation order, must give notice to the District Council. The District Council can then consider the contribution the tree makes to the character of the area and if necessary make a Tree Preservation Order to protect it. preserve the character or appearance of such areas.
- #27 Planning authorities, when deciding whether to grant planning permission within Conservation Areas, are required by law to pay special attention to the need to enhance or In practice, this means that any planning application within a Conservation Area will receive additional scrutiny to establish whether the nature of the proposed development would at least complement and if possible enhance the area’s special qualities. There are also some additional planning controls over demolition, minor works and the protection of trees within Conservation Areas: Demolition: There are specific controls over the demolition of buildings in Conservation Areas, and a presumption in favour of retaining buildings that make positive contributions to the character or appearance of such areas. Any demolition within a Conservation Area, other than demolition for which there is specific statutory exemption, must be authorised by a prior grant of Conservation Area Consent by the relevant District Council. Demolition without consent is a criminal offence. Minor developments: Within all Conservation Areas, planning permission must be obtained from the District Council before making some of the minor alterations to buildings that would not normally be subject to planning control elsewhere. Such alterations include applying certain types of cladding, inserting dormer windows, and erecting satellite dishes which are visible from the street. District Councils may also choose to place restrictions on other alterations, such as painting a house a different colour, or changing distinctive front doors, windows, or other architectural features. The District Council must have a good reason for making these restrictions, and must take account of views of local people before doing so. Trees: Trees make an important contribution to the character of the local environment and are important features of many Conservation Areas. Anyone proposing to cut down, top or lop a tree in a Conservation Area, whether or not it is covered by a tree preservation order, must give notice to the District Council. The District Council can then consider the contribution the tree makes to the character of the area and if necessary make a Tree Preservation Order to protect it. preserve the character or appearance of such areas.