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Barnmead Road
Conservation Area
Guidance notes
1.0 Introduction
This statement is a
précis of the Supplementary Planning Guidance issued by Bromley Council.
It provides advice and guidance, both for the owners and occupiers of
buildings in the Conservation Area and to the Council, about the way in
which the area should best be managed to preserve and enhance its
character. The map shows the boundaries of the Conservation Area.
Together with general advice and guidance about Conservation Area law
and policy that are available in separate pamphlets, it now forms
supplementary planning guidance to the Bromley Unitary Development Plan.
2.0
Description
2.1 This
description sets out the nature of the architectural and historical
interest of the conservation area, showing how it has developed over
time to form the current character of the area.
2.2 Barnmead
Road Conservation Area comprises detached and semi-detached Victorian
villas built around Kent House Station in Beckenham. Barnmead Road
derives its name from
ABarn
Mead@
- one of the fields on which the houses were built in the late 19th
century and marks a stage in the growth of Beckenham from a village to a
suburb, linked by development to London.
2.3 Following
the opening of the first station in Beckenham in 1858,
ABarn
Mead@
was severed from the surrounding agricultural land by the new railway.
The population of the area increased rapidly, creating the need for
further stations and fuelling new development. In 1884, the first of
three new stations on the existing London, Chatham and Dover Railway was
opened, using an access through
ABarn
Mead@.
Known as Kent House, after the nearby mansion, the new station assisted
the development of Barnmead Road, now in a highly accessible location.
2.4 A local
firm of builders, Syme & Duncan, began construction in 1885, and the
final house was built ten years later. Their yard at 2 Barnmead Road lay
behind the development, and the Estate Office was built in the station
approach. The houses that were constructed were generally semi-detached,
interspersed with a few detached properties, and were orientated
towards middle-class occupancy.
3.0
Guidance Statement
3.1 This
guidance statement highlights important elements of the character of the
area that it is desirable to preserve or enhance and proposes ways in
which the Council will achieve this objective. Individual paragraphs
provide guidance on specific issues, for example, the building materials
or construction methods that are typical of the area.
3.2 Barnmead
Road has a cohesive character, derived from the limited range of plan
forms and materials used in the development. The base plan of the
semi-detached houses is almost identical, employing a yellow London
stock brick shell marked with simple red string courses. However,
variation, individuality and interest was introduced by the use of
different roof structures and a wide range of bay window types. The
basic houses have a relatively shallow pitched hipped roof with the
ridge running parallel to the frontage. More complex houses have gables
at each flank wall and sometimes a gable on the main elevation. The
simplest bay windows are square yellow stock brick ground floor bays.
The more complex is a two-storey
Athreepenny
bit@
red brick bay, crowned with a conical slate roof, employing special
brick details, stone lintels, sills and corbels.
3.3. Other
original elements include slate roofs, timber sash windows and yellow
London stock brick boundary walls. Of great importance to the character
of the road are the ornate porches, made of both cast iron and timber
with zinc and slate roofs. On the semi-detached houses, these elaborate
structures bridge between pairs of bay windows on the front elevations
and add greatly to the visual interest of their host dwellings. Many of
these porches are of the highest quality and provide fine examples of
Victorian workmanship. They merit the greatest efforts in their
retention.
3.4 An
important element of the character of the area is the unmetalled
condition of the street surfaces. The carriageways are
AMacadamised@
in the original meaning of the term, made up of rolled crushed rock
without any tar to bind it. The footways are surfaced in pea gravel and
divided from the carriageway with thin York stone curbs, some being
replaced with granite curbs. The street lamps have been replaced in
Victorian style, enabling the road to present an excellent understanding
of the appearance of many residential areas in the era of horse
transport. The Council will promote the retention of the original street
surfacing and furniture in the Conservation Area.
3.5 Mature
street and garden trees and the wooded former railway embankment on the
eastern boundary add significantly to the quality of both public and
private space in the Conservation Area.
3.6 Many of
the houses constructed by Syme & Duncan are in an excellent state of
preservation, retaining superb examples of Victorian detailing.
Relatively few detrimental alterations have occurred to the form of the
houses. Unfortunately, some have lost important details such as porches,
windows or garden walls to unsympathetic replacements, but these losses
have not yet started to impinge upon the area=s
overall interest. The Council sees the minimisation and reversal of such
losses as being a very high priority in Barnmead Road and an Article 4
Directive has been applied on the area for this reason. Wherever
possible the development control process will be used to ensure that
detail is either retained or appropriately replaced.
3.7 The
Council will expect all proposals for new development to conform with
the character of that section of the Conservation Area surrounding the
proposal site and with the general character of the area, especially in
regard to the scale and height of construction, location with a plot
(where material), design and materials used. It is hoped that all
improvement works will take account of the character of the buildings
and alter them as little as possible.
3.8 Change of
use will be acceptable only where, in the opinion of the Council, they
would have no detrimental effect on the character of the area. Loss of
residential units will be resisted.
3.9 Where
appropriate, landscape conditions will be imposed on planning consents
to preserve or enhance the character of the area by front and rear
gardens.
3.10 The Council
wishes to ensure that businesses in Conservation Areas are fully able to
advertise their goods and services. However, it will also wish to reduce
the visual clutter that poorly designed and located advertisements can
sometimes cause. Advertisements, which in the Council=s
opinion, detract from the character of the area will be resisted or made
the subject to discontinuance action where necessary. New and
replacement signs should be designed in a way that minimises their
adverse impact; they should be as small as possible and should not be
displayed at first floor level or above, especially on exposed flank
walls. Traditional forms of signage (painted boards or brass plates) are
to be preferred over modern forms (such as perspex or posters).
Illuminated advertisements are not felt to be appropriate within this
predominantly residential area.
Article 4 Direction
3.11 The Council
has made a Direction under Article 4 of the General Development Order
1988 (now Article 4(1) of the General Permitted Development Order 1995)
which covers the whole of Barnmead Road Conservation Area. The Direction
has been confirmed by the Secretary of State. The effect of the Order is
to impose tighter control over the types of development that do not
ordinarily require Planning Permission. Planning Permission is now
required for:
(i) Replacement
windows and alterations to windows or window openings to any part of the
building.
(ii) The alteration
or removal of any part or whole of a rear conservatory.
(iii) Re-roofing and/or the alteration to the
roof by material or addition of a skylight.
(iv) Exterior painting of any elevation (but
windows can be painted without consent).
(v) Making or
altering a hard surface (such as a path or drive) within any part of the
curtilage.
(vi) Building a
porch outside any external door on any front elevation.
(vii) Installing,
altering or replacing a satellite dish.
(viii) Replacing or
altering an existing front entrance door.
(ix) The removal,
replacement or construction of a porch.
(x) The alteration
and/or replacement of a front gat, walls and other means of enclosure,
adjacent to the highway.
These provisions
took place in December 1992 and June 1999.
This does not affect
those developments which already require Planning Permission, i.e.:
·
Any
proposed development which seeks to enlarge the property by more than
10% pf the original volume of the building. Garages within the curtilage
of the property, as well as existing extensions will count as part of
the additional 10%.
·
The
proposed change of removal of any chimney stack.
·
The
application of render to the front and/or flank walls.
·
The
lopping, topping, uprooting, pruning or felling of any tree with a girth
of more than 75mm, except fruit trees.
·
The
conversion of a single dwelling into multiple dwellings and vice versa.
·
The
demolition of any building or part within the Conservation Area.
Materials & Methods
3.13 The houses
constructed by Syme & Duncan share common materials and methods of
construction. The houses employ a limited but pleasing range of
materials: red and yellow London stock bricks are used in the
construction of elevations, some blue engineering bricks in decoration.
Timber windows, slate roofs and cast iron or timber porches are typical.
Exterior Details
3.15 Original
design features, such as chimney stack heads and pots, moulded special
bricks employed in string courses and window bays, elaborate timber and
cast iron porches, window and door mouldings, corbels, barge boards and
roof finials are the most attractive and distinctive elements of the
properties in the Conservation Area. String courses in red brick or blue
brick specials mark horizontal bands on the yellow stock facades.
Preserving the pattern and continuity of these during repairs and
alterations will be of great importance.
3.16 Particular
mention should be made of the characteristic stone corbels that are
found supporting window sills and at eaves level on many houses. Great
care should be taken with stone detail; if damaged, it is often
difficult to replace.
3.17 Details
characteristic of the area should be retained and repaired wherever
possible. When planning permission is required, the conservation of such
details and their appropriate application in new work will be required.
Windows and Doors
3.18 The windows
in the Conservation Area consist primarily of pine vertical sliding
sashes recessed into the wall. The sash frames are simple, each
enclosing a single piece of glass. The original size and proportions of
windows and door openings should be retained: unconsidered changes can
destroy the design of the whole frontage and damage important detail.
3.19 Much
joinery of the late 19th century was constructed with the
highest standards of materials and workmanship. As such a simple repair
will often be sufficient to prolong its life. Regular inspection and
repainting, where necessary, will help to prolong the life of the
original windows and doors.
3.20 Window
replacements should relate carefully to the original designs, should use
traditional materials and finishes and be set back into the brickwork.
Unpainted hardwood, aluminium and uPVC windows and doors should be
avoided. While there are a number of such examples in existence, any
such new proposals will be resisted. There are specialist companies who
will undertake repairs and replace joinery that has deteriorated too
far, at a substantial saving on the cost of replacement with uPVC or
aluminium. This can include fitting double-glazed units with brushes to
existing timber sash windows, without detriment to their visual
integrity.
3.21 All window
and door replacements are now the subject of a planning application.
Porches
3.22 Fine
cast-iron and timber porches are a distinguishing feature of the area.
Generally, they span the recess between the bay windows of adjoining
semi- detached houses. They range in structure from simple timber
lattices with slate roofs
to
highly elaborate cast-iron filigree pillars, supporting zinc roofs.
Every attempt should be made to retain the original porches. The careful
and sympathetic repair or
reinstatement of damaged timber or ironwork should be given high
priority. The bricking-in or glazing of a recessed porch should be
avoided as this will damage the
appearance of both houses in a semi-detached unit. Planning permission
will be required before any new porches can be constructed or
existing removed.
3.23 An
application for Conservation Area consent must be made before a porch is
demolished. Because the original porches make a positive
contribution to the character of the Conservation Area, such
demolition will be resisted, unless the proposal is accompanied
by details of an appropriate replacement porch that preserves or
enhances the character of the area.
Roofs
3.24 Despite
the basic unity of house design in Barnmead Road, there are several
different variations in the style of roofs employed. The simplest houses
have hipped
roofs.
More elaborate ones are gabled, some to the side elevation, but the
larger ones also have secondary gables to the front.
Variation is also added by the various
approaches taken to roofing bay windows.
3.25
Originally, all roofs in the Conservation Area were of Welsh slate. A
mixture of both
red and
blue ridge tiles appear to have been used. More delicate roof pitches
(such
as
dormers or bay windows) had lead ridges. Gables to front elevations are
often
marked
with elaborate timber barge boards and turned ridge end finials. Every
effort
should
be made to retain such interesting detail. One of the most significant
impacts
on the
character of the Conservation Area in recent years has been the
substitution of
Welsh
slate for a variety of designs and colours of profiled concrete tiles.
The harmony of matching slate roofs has been eroded and for this
reason slate or an acceptable alternative is recommended as the
preferred material for repairs and/or
replacement.
3.26 Planning
permission is required fro alterations to the structure and pitch of
roofs as
well as
re-roofing, in the Conservation Area. The Council will not permit the
use of
roof
coverings that do not relate well to the visual quality of slate, i.e.
concrete tiles
will not
be permitted.
Dormers and Roof
Lights
3.27 Many of
the houses in Barnmead Road contain roof space that already provides
accommodation, or is capable of doing so. For houses that
lack existing light into the
roof
space, the best solution is likely to be the insertion of small pitched
roof dormers
on the
rear-facing slope. They should be contained within the roof slope; they
should
not
break the ridge line and should be clad in a material to match the roof.
On houses with hipped roofs, roof lights (divided with glazing bars
and fitted flush with the roof
surface
could be installed on the hip. Dormers on the hip should be avoided;
they will
extend
the form of the house as seen from the road and decrease the visual
distance
between
adjacent houses. Insertion of a new roof light into the front elevation
will only be permitted where it matches the size of an existing,
which it is intended to replace.
3.28 Where a
house is either detached or does not form part of a strictly symmetrical
pair,
the
installation of a dormer to the front elevation may be possible without
having an
adverse
effect on the appearance of the property. Careful reference should be
made
to the
original dormers in the road which provide a guide to the appropriate
form and
detailing. However, many semi-detached houses are symmetrical, part of
an equal
pair;
the addition of a dormer to the front elevation of one in a pair could
place the
original
design out of balance and should be avoided.
Extensions
3.29 Because of
the importance of the form and detailing of front elevations to the
character of the Conservation Area, extensions to the front of the
houses will not normally be permitted. It is also important for the
character of the road that the houses retain a semi-detached
appearance. For this reason, two-storey extensions or extensions
flush with the front of the front elevation that tend to transform the
houses
into a
terrace will be resisted. Where an extension affects pre-existing
detail, such as
string
courses or lintels, the adoption of matching details in the extension
should be
carefully considered.
Layout and New
Development
3.30 The area’s
layout and spatial characteristics are a very important part of its
character
and in
considering any proposals special attention will be paid to plot widths,
scale
and bulk
of buildings and the relationship with adjacent buildings. Backland
development in garden land will be resisted.
3.31 While none
of the houses in the area are statutorily listed, the great majority
make a positive contribution towards the character and appearance of the
area, because they illustrate the original form of the 19th-century
development. The Council wishes to protect the totality of the original
development, and for this reason the general presumption will be to
resist applications for consent to demolish any of the 19th-century
buildings. Opportunities for new development will be restricted.
Trees
3.32
Conservation Area designation gives the Council special power over
trees. Anyone proposing to do work to a tree must give written notice of
their proposals to the Council. They may not proceed until the Council
has given its written consent, or six weeks have expired. All except
trees of a girth of less than 75mm or fruit trees are protected by a
Tree Preservation Order, and consent must always be obtained before work
commences, as it is now a criminal offence to do otherwise.
3.33 The many
mature street and garden trees make an important contribution to the
character of the area. Loss will be resisted except in cases where a
tree can be established as the source of structural defects or is badly
diseased or damaged. On the eastern boundary of the area, a former
railway embankment provides the houses with a pleasing backdrop of
trees. The Council will wish to encourage the retention and management
of this area as woodland.
Fences, Hedges and
Garden Walls
3.34 When first
built, the front gardens were enclosed with low yellow stock brick
walls. Although originally these may have been topped with iron
railings, many have been replaced with hedges that contribute greatly to
the character of the area. Side plots were commonly enclosed with high
timber boarded fences, again often now backed with a hedge. The hedges,
fences and walls formed a coordinated design giving a strong sense of
identity and enclosure. In recent years this has been eroded with the
loss of boundary walls and the use of unsympathetic materials in new
construction. Most elaborate contemporary enclosures have not improved
the pleasant domestic setting of the Conservation Area. The removal of
original walls and fences should in general be avoided. Where new walls
are constructed, it is important that the design and materials used are
sympathetic to the remaining originals and respect the materials used in
the construction of the houses. Front walls should be low, preferably
below 1.0m in height. Where extra privacy is required, the planting of a
hedge should be preferred to the construction of higher brick walls.
Hard standings
3.35 Parking on
hard standings within front gardens should be kept to an absolute
minimum; it results in the loss of much important greenery. If there is
no alternative, the general aim should be to retain as much sense of
enclosure and greenery as possible. As much of the existing front
boundary as possible should be retained. The retention or provision of
gates to screen the street and re-establish the boundary should be a
high priority. All materials used should be sympathetic to the character
of the area. Additional planting to screen cars could also be valuable.
Natural surfaces such as gravel, stone or second-hand stock brick
should be used in preference to concrete, tarmac or proprietary textured
surfaces. If these objectives can be achieved, the effect on the
character and appearance of the street will be minimised.
3.36 Planning
permission is required for the installation of drives, paths and hard
standing.
Garages
3.37 A number of
garages have already been provided in the gaps between semi-detached
houses. This is the only feasible location for such buildings. However,
care should be taken to ensure that new garages are recessed behind the
line of the main frontages to emphasise the physical separation of
houses. For the same reason, tall garage buildings should be avoided.
The use of materials sympathetic to that of the area should be employed.
Statutory Listed
Buildings
3.38 Barnmead
Road Conservation Area has no statutory listed buildings.
Locally Listed
Buildings
3.39 At present
there are no locally listed buildings in the Conservation Area.
Enhancement Action
by the Council
3.40 Most of the
buildings in the Conservation Area are private dwelling houses and the
road is also private, being a private street as well as a public
highway. As such there is little scope for direct Council action to
enhance either their repair and improvement and this will generally be a
matter for their owners.
3.41 The area
currently attracts parking generated by Kent House Station. The Council
will explore ways of reducing this impact, in direct consultation with
the residents, Railtrack plc and the rail service franchise holders.
3.42 Kent House
Station is important to the appearance of the Conservation Area,
terminating the main vista into the area from Plawsfield Road. The
Council will maintain contact with Railtrack plc about alterations and
maintenance to the station with a view to enhancing its appearance.
3.43 The current
closure of the entrance to Barnmead Road from Kent House Road is not of
high visual quality. The Council will investigate its replacement with a
closure that is more in keeping with the character of the road.
3.44 Loss of
street trees has left opportunities for new street planting.
3.45 The Council
will ensure that development control in conservation areas is undertaken
with care and sensitivity to the appearance and character of the area.
It does this by referring applications to the Council=s
Conservation Officer, Tree Officer, as appropriate, and the Advisory
Panel for Conservation Areas (APCA). APCA consists of independent
representatives of relevant professions (such as architecture and town
planning) and interest groups (such as The Council for the Protection of
Rural England, English Heritage and the London Borough of Bromley
Residents Federation). Each conservation area is entitled to an APCA
representative, usually nominated from the local residents=
association.
Further Information
If you have a
Conservation Area question or wish to make an application for
development, the Council will be happy to advise on an individual
basis. For further assistance, please contact:
London Borough of
Bromley, Civic Centre, Stockwell Close, Bromley BR1 3UH
- for conservation
matters: Heritage and Urban Design
conservation@bromley.gov.uk
- for planning
matters: Planning Division
- for advice on
trees: Coral Gibson 020 8313 4516
Bromley Council also
publishes an online conservation newsletter called Rabbit,
accessible at
http://www2.bromley.gov.uk/content/environment2/conservation/rabbit_planning_newsletter
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