Memorandum by The Chester Civic Trust
(HIS 07)
SUMMARY
1. Chester Civic Trust is part of the national
civic society movement. We are devoted to enhancing the quality
of life in Chester for people who live here and visit, to work
shop or relax. Our headquarters, in an historic Grade I listed
building, is itself an excellent example of a building on a site
with 2000 years of history that still serves a community need,
containing as it does a mix of shops, a residential flat and meeting
rooms.
2. Based on our local experience, we believe
that Chester demonstrates the strong contribution made by historic
buildings. For this to continue we argue for: local partnerships;
new approaches by government to make use of their portfolios of
historic properties; a new role for conservation in local authorities;
flexibility for road planning and road signage and, an investigation
into `quality' targets for the urban environment.
3. All the comments that follow are in our
view, pertinent to Chester, and may be of interest to other communities.
INTRODUCTION
4. Chester itself is an historic cathedral
city that is thriving, socially, economically and culturally.
The question is therefore, in the Chester context:? To what
extent does Chester owe its success to historic buildings?
— What is being done locally to secure
that success?
— What can be done in the future, locally
and nationally, to ensure sustainable regeneration?
THE CONTRIBUTION
OF HISTORIC
BUILDINGS TO
URBAN REGENERATION
5. There cannot be many cities in the UK
where buildings illustrate more clearly their continuous development
over a two thousand year period. Chester and its surrounding District
contain approximately 1500 listed buildings of architectural and
historic interest, and 63 conservation areas of national significance.
The historic buildings are important for a number of reasons.
They:
— Form its unique streetscape.
— Provide an aesthetic experience both
for passers by and occupants/visitors.
— Are by and large visible from public
places and footpaths.
— Act as landmarks and improve the
legibility of streets.
— Create a sense within each street
of being unique.
6. The historic buildings are fundamental
to what Chester is. If they were to be taken away, the city would
lose most of its character and sense of being a special place.
Not entirely though: this special local character goes much wider
than buildings. Other important historic attributes are our city
walls (roman and mediaeval); parks and green spaces; canals; railways
and rivers. They also provide a historic context for modern life.
7. Listed buildings have been successfully
recycled in Chester and elsewhere. They are able to accept new
lives whilst retaining their historical significance. We believe
that developers and building professionals are "scared"
of historic buildings and we also understand, for example, that
they are generally excluded from PFI schemes.
8. The important point is that historic
buildings are not historic baggage. These assets, in our view,
are just what make the city such a welcome place for:
— Residential development
— Small and Medium businesses (SME)
— Incoming businesses including multi
nationals
9. Action on conservation has been, and
is, of prime importance. Chester started early in that a pioneering
report by Donald Insall: "Chester: A Study in Conservation"
(1968) was the key to the community recognising the value of the
historic environment, and of greater importance, pointing the
way forward for the future. So much that has happened in the subsequent
decades has flowed from this pioneering work. It is no coincidence
that the city economy has also developed and grown during this
period. The two issues: conservation of what we have and development
of the economy, have been complementary.
THE ROLE
AND EFFECTIVENESS
OF THE
PUBLIC AGENCIES
IN ENCOURAGING
URBAN REGENERATION
10. In our view, this is a key issue: historic
buildings can become a dead asset without positive and imaginative
action by, in the first instance, the local authority. It needs
to provide a framework within which public service, enterprise
and trade, can work.
11. This framework can be provided by local
strategies and plans.
— Community plans that recognize the
importance of our built heritage and its contribution to the health
and well being of the community, in all senses: its culture, its
sense of belonging, life long learning, the local economy, and
recreation.
— Local Plans that identify the importance
of the historic urban fabric and opportunities for developing
in urban areas.
— A Local Distinctiveness Plan that
identifies all the major aspects of the City that makes it special,
and identifies priorities for dealing with the assets that require
conservation, improvement, or development. The Plan is based on
the notion of a number of component parts that each contribute
to making the city special. Its:
— areas with special character
— Area Development Briefs that look
at specific areas of the city and
— Identify their distinctive qualities
— Guide developments to make sure they
meet the needs of the Local Plan
— Provide a clear policy context for
buildings of historic interest and of national and international
importance
— Provides a clear statement of priority
for future funding bids
12. In an historic city such as Chester,
we believe in the Civic Trust that other strategies and plans
must also cross reference to historic buildings:
— Economic Development Strategy
— Crime and Safety Strategies (such
as lighting strategies)
13. We believe there are two major national
issues:
Highways regulations are imposed too rigidly.
Poor surrounding spaces and highways can often damage the setting
of historic buildings. We would also make the point that excessive
road signs can also damage the setting of an historic building.
That severe under funding of planning departments
has led to a weakening of their conservation role and is in danger
of undoing a lot of valuable active conservation work undertaken
by both City and County Councils in the late 1960s, the 1970s,
and the 1980s, when both authorities allocated proportionally
more funding to the task. The role needs to change in order to
meet new needs and new circumstances.
WHETHER ORGANISATIONS
GIVE SUFFICIENT
REGARD TO
HISTORIC BUILDINGS
14. In the past it is arguable that government
(central and local) throughout the UK did not give sufficient
regard to the importance of historic buildings to the local environment.
Chester, as an historic town, was fortunate in that its importance
was recognised, from the late 1960's onward.
15. The problem is, as stated above, the
current under funding of the planning activity, nationwide. This
squeezes resources out of conservation, environmental action and
even forward planning into the `fire fighting role' of development
control in order to meet the national targets related to processing
applications.
16. Because it is easier for the Audit Commission
to set `quantity' targets rather than `quality' targets, the conservation
role suffers. So, we believe the role of conservation needs to
change, to reflect a concern that goes wider than individual buildings.
The issues are about:
— The condition and potential of specific
zones and areas of the city: creating the urban setting for a
thriving city centre: socially, culturally and economically.
— The distinctive nature of Chester
and how can it be maintained and improved.
— Making sure that community plans
recognise the importance of our historic environment and are not
subsumed by other pressing priorities.17 In general, we believe
that creating a quality environment should be a national target.
We believe that, around the country:
— The quality and diversity of historic
assets need to be fully understood (we believe they are already
understood in Chester).
— The historic environment is often
seen as a constraint but should be seen as a key opportunity for
regeneration and employment.
— Creative industries and tourism thrive
in areas of historic, cultural and geographical diversity.
18. For these reasons, conservation and
development should go hand-in-hand.
19. This is as much about people as about
organizations. We understand English Heritage has confirmed through
research that "Conservation Officers" are a scarce and
dwindling breed. There is also a serious shortage of design skills
in Local Planning offices. As local authority architects departments
have died out, there is often no architectural design resource
at all. Without in-house skills, the efforts of CABE and others
are unlikely to have a great impact.
20. Elected Members play an important role.
In Chester we are fortunate that they take an interest in design,
some are architecturally trained, and have the skill to engage
good architects. Many places do not have architect councillors
to champion good design.
WHETHER THE
PLANNING SYSTEM
AND LISTING
OF HISTORIC
BUILDINGS AID
OR HINDER
REGENERATION
21. We would not support any weakening of
the protection that listing provides. For example we would not
wish buildings be moved onto a "Local List" without
full assurance that the protection they currently enjoy would
transfer with them.
22. Good design of alteration to listed
buildings, based on decisions made with a clear understanding
of the significance of the listed building, will enable regeneration.
The notion that listed buildings cannot alter or be changed is
widespread and false.
23. One issue is the way in which listing
is defined nationally in a statutory and precise way as being
appropriate for a specific building or monument. Locally, the
definition of heritage is more usually related, not to the precise
historic definition of a property, but more to the sense of the
general environment and the way the building contributes to the
environment, or not. By extension, the way a building could contribute
to regeneration is an opportunity for the local community to engage
in regeneration planning.
WHETHER ALL
GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTS
TAKE ADEQUATE
ACCOUNT OF
THE HISTORIC
ENVIRONMENT
24. One problem area is the government portfolio
itself. Our experience is that government property portfolio holders
are not themselves subject to any kind of democratic control:
so are indifferent to local social and cultural objectives. Neither
are they subject to the commercial needs of the market.
25. Government should lead by example: first
of all in assessing and then realizing the potential to develop
new uses in the historic buildings they own.
26. One example: Chester Castle is an important
feature in the Chester landscape and is a historically important
and under used asset in every respect. Parts of the site are in
very poor condition. Yet, it is of national and international
significance, not just because of the buildings, but because of
the expression they give to:
— 1,000 years of British history: a
site used for royal, civil, military and judicial authority for
1,000 years
— Medieval Religious Art: rare examples
of wall paintings dating back to the reign of Henry III
— The work of Thomas Harrison: a key
"Greek Revival" set of building of immense importance.
27. The potential is there for the Castle
complex to make an important contribution to the economy as a
world-class tourist destination. At present it remains a sad reminder
of neglect.
28. Why is this
To quote from the Chester Castle Conservation Plan
(English Heritage 2001): "Chester Castle is divided between
two freehold ownerships, the Crown and Cheshire County Council.
In practice, however, it is vested with various departments within
these large organisations or in their external agencies . . .
control of the Crown Property is split between English Heritage,
which has a management agreement with Chester City Council; the
Ministry of Defence; and the Crown Estates, who are seeking to
dispose of two major leaseholds".
29. The result is that each agency acts
within its own "silo", and finding the site complex,
deals with immediate issues and acts within current constraints.
To quote the report: "Disposal of leaseholds for quick commercial
gain . . . could have a damaging impact on individual buildings
and on the complete entity"
30. We believe some way should be found
of breaking this kind of log jam and that government departments
should be allowed to assign community and social values of properties
rather than a simple short term commercial value. To break this
log jam three things are required: a clear strategy, "joined
up thinking", and relaxing the "best price wins"
rules.
31. One idea would be to "move"
properties at nil value into other organisations. We note, for
example, the success of the National Trust. They have a good record
of taking properties and campaigning for their retention for the
nation. Their charitable status allows them to campaign and be
entrepreneurial in their approach. Their services to members also
create a loyalty and `buy in' to projects in a way that governmental
organisation cannot.
32. An alternative would be to search for
new opportunities for the private sector to increase its funding
via partnerships between the historic environment sector and the
private sector, as identified in the DCMS report: "The Historic
Environment: A Force for our Future"
WHETHER FISCAL
AND LEGISLATIVE
CHANGES SHOULD
BE MADE
33. Other will no doubt respond on the question
of VAT. We recognise that this is complex but would support a
general approach that equalized the tax burden between new build
and conservation, repair and maintenance of existing building
whilst recognizing that the overall tax take would need to be
maintained.
IN CONCLUSION
34. Whatever this Inquiry concludes, we
believe a successful outcome needs new partnerships that deal
with:
— Improving the Image of the locality
— Improving the Quality of Life
— Improving learning about the environment
though education and skills development
— Marketing "quality" of
environment to the commercial sector.
35. To summarize the issues as we see them,
they are:
— The importance of "holistic"
Local Strategic Partnerships (LSPs) and local strategies and plans
that recognize the importance of the historic environment? New
approaches by central government and national public service bodies
to find new ways of making use of their massive portfolios of
underused historic properties.
— A new role for conservation in local
authorities: allied to regeneration in all its aspects: social
and economic.
— Flexibility for road planning and
road signage that is more sensitive to the special nature of the
urban historic environment
— An investigation into "quality"
targets for the urban environment.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This memorandum is the result of discussions
and contributions from a group of members of Chester Civic Trust,
for which, many thanks.
Peter Bingham
Chairman
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