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Conserving our Heritage The
character of Horsham depends to a very large extent on
the built environment, that is the buildings, street
layout and open spaces that have evolved over many
centuries. The last twenty five years have seen huge
changes to our street scene with many much loved
landmarks disappearing in the wake of bedevilment. Yet
there is still much left to be treasured, and
hopefully conserved, particularly in the town centre.
The important word is “conserved” rather than
“preserved”. If towns such as Horsham are to thrive
they have to adapt to changing economic and social
needs. The way in which families work and live today
is very different to that experienced a couple of
generations ago. The pace of change is increasingly
fast and is likely to grow ever faster as the digital
age advances. The jobs people do, and their patterns
of work, leisure and retirement will change. And the
buildings we use to live, work, shop and be
entertained in will need to change too. So,
realistically, we cannot preserve Horsham as it is
now. Instead we need to try to control changes in ways
which conserve the best elements of our street scene
whilst where necessary allowing buildings to find new
roles to meet new requirements.
The current debate over the future of the Town Hall is
a good example. There is no doubt that this is an
important building which over the years has played a
significant role in the civic life of the town and
needs to be conserved. But currently it is under-used,
in need of internal redecoration and updating, and
only partly available to the public. It needs to be
given a new lease of life and a role which captures
the imagination of a new generation. Only then can we
be sure it will still be in good heart fifty years
from now.
So what protection does our town heritage enjoy at
present? There are three important planning tools
which seek to control development. The first are the
conservation areas. These are areas of “special
architectural or historic interest, the character or
appearance of which it is desirable to preserve or
enhance”. The key aspect here is the character of an
area as a whole rather than just specific buildings of
importance. So it also includes, for example, trees,
walls and open spaces. By defining a conservation area
it is possible to exercise additional planning
controls to ensure future changes preserve or enhance
the special features of the area. We have three
conservation areas in the town. The largest covers the
medieval town centre, including the Carfax, Causeway,
and parts of East Street, West Street and Denne Road.
The other two Areas are much smaller, covering London
Road, and Gordon Road including parts of Richmond Road
and Wimblehurst Road.
The second planning tool is to identify a group of
buildings and their surroundings as an “area of
special character”. This designation does not provide
the same protection as a conservation area but is
nevertheless taken into account when considering
planning applications. Within Horsham we have a number
of such Areas, mainly on the key approach roads such
as Guildford Road, Worthing Road, Brighton Road and Warnham Road.
Then there are Listed Buildings. This is a national
scheme and the listing process is now the
responsibility of English Heritage. To be included in
the List a building must be of special architectural
or historic interest and the criteria for listing are
fairly strict. Generally, the older the building the
more likely it is to be listed. Almost all buildings
built before 1700 which remain in their original
condition will be listed, and a large number of those
built between 1700 and 1840, but the more modern the
building the tighter the criteria. Listed buildings
are protected and owners have to have consent before
they can demolish or alter them. In Horsham we are
fortunate to have around 200 listed buildings, many of
them, as one would expect, in the conservation areas.
Many local authorities also sponsor local listing
schemes which recognise the importance of key
buildings which, while not justifying full national
Listing, have important civic, social or historical
significance, or contribute in an important way to the
street scene. Although locally listed buildings do not
enjoy legal protection the planning authorities take
account of their importance when considering planning
applications. Horsham District Council has not so far
accepted the Society’s proposal for a local listing
scheme so we are keen to identify buildings, or groups
of buildings – particularly outside the conservation
areas - which the public value and would like to see
conserved for future generations. Depending on the
response we will raise the issue again with the
Council.
With this panoply of protection one might think all is
well and we can sit back in the knowledge that the
street scene that we know today will still be there in
ten or twenty years from now, and that changes that
have to be made are properly controlled. But the
Horsham Society believes this attitude might prove
dangerously complacent. For example, the pressure for
redevelopment of “brown field sites” and Government
policy supporting higher density is encouraging
developers to cram buildings into backland development
taking advantage of properties with large rear
gardens. Individual schemes may not in themselves seem
too damaging but if the trend accelerates it could
change the character of some parts of the town
irretrievably.
So, please contact us with your views and suggestions,
particularly about buildings you would like to see
protected. It does not matter how old a building is,
only that it is an important part of the street scene,
or has historical significance in the life of the
town, and you would be sorry if it were to disappear.
John Steele
chairman@horshamsociety.org
Do local campaigners have too much
power?8
Horsham Society
Vice-President Oliver Palmer's letters to Building
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