conserved andwhatneeds tobeimproved. Stoke FlemingConservation Area special,whatneedsto be The purposeofthisappraisal istosetoutwhatmakesthe the conservationarea. they “preserveorenhancethecharacterappearance” of the Councilhasastatutorydutytoapproveproposals onlyif to achievecompliancewiththem. This isessentialbecause document ‘NewWork inConservation Areas’ explainshow South HamsLocalPlan,whiletheSupplementary planning proposals affecting conservationareasaresetoutinthe The policiesfollowedbytheDistrictCouncilwhen assessing reinforce thesequalities. area designationhighlightstheneedtopreserveand distinctive featuresmakethemspecial.Conservation whose survivinghistoric,architecturalandlocally parts ofourtownsandvillages.Theyareplaces Conservation Areas areusuallylocatedintheolder Conservation AreaAppraisal Stoke Fleming July 2009

Stoke Fleming Summary of Special Interest Location and Setting

The spectacular coastal scenery around Stoke Fleming has Stoke Fleming is situated on sloping ground around the been appreciated for centuries. From the C18 the magnifi cent 300m contour, dropping away to 200m on the cliffs nearby. location attracted wealthy residents who built some large Grid Reference: SX862484. The population is about 900. houses around a nucleus of earlier farming buildings. Dartmouth is nearly three miles to the north-east and the village lies in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and is The Church of St. Peter sits at the top of the village in an surrounded by a Coastal Preservation Area. elevated position: its tall Ashburton-type tower has been a landmark for sailors for centuries. From the top of the The village was designated a conservation area in church tower one can see the aesthetic value the garden September 1976 and extended in February 1994. The spaces have at Stoke Fleming. The large gardens around amendment added the house and grounds of Sanders to Stoke House and Sanders provide trees and green areas the south of the church and The Old House in the north. north and south of the village, but an additional green area Visitors approaching from the north will immediately perceive has been created by a fortunate cluster of smaller gardens the essence of Stoke Fleming. Houses and high stone walls around the Chapel. View from south west approach to village line both sides of the narrow road which winds down the From the more open westerly section of the village and hill to the village centre. From the village nucleus, there are looking down Church Road, the scene is of two and three views up Church Road and along the A379 where the outlook There is a noticeable contrast between the open area around storey houses, mostly rendered, and built front-on to the becomes much more open with fi ne views of Start Bay. the church and the more enclosed centre with its high walls, road. Once in the village centre, the houses and high Walkers will be delighted by narrow lanes with high stone narrow streets and closely spaced buildings. However stone walls visible up Dartmouth Road entice one up the walls interspersed with rubble cottages and houses. There are generally within the village it is apparent that agriculture was hill to investigate the lanes that appear to radiate from good views into the village and over attractive coastal scenery once important and a legacy has been left at Manor Court, the main road and lead to other areas of interest in the - there are glimpses of courtyards and attractive gardens. Tappers and some altered farm buildings in Chapel Lane. conservation area. One of these is Chapel Lane. It is narrow; the walls are Historic high and again the houses are built front on to the lane. The ubiquitious local stone and slate have been utilised but some Development houses have been painted. The effect is one of enclosure and Townscape and is delightful. The narrow lane carries on around a corner and winds down the slope concealing private garden spaces Important gardens areas in village centre Stoke Fleming existed before the and terminating with a view over trees and Start Bay. Norman Conquest as a small rural village centred around a manor. Further up Dartmouth Road, another lane leads to Stoke At this time grazing rights were House. The house has been enlarged and converted to often established tacitly by natural multiple residential use, 1 boundaries and this was so at Stoke but the original boundary Fleming. The northern boundary stone walls and some of stretched as far as the deep inlet the garden have been at Old Mill Creek near Dartmouth, retained and are part of the as well as in all the valleys running conservation area. up from Blackpool Beach. It seems A view of Start Bay may probable that the land immediately not always be visible around Stoke Fleming itself was from the conservation farmed communally. There are area, but there are many references to remains of a chapel 2 interesting features and and oratory in the C18, the site of Trees reminders of former times: Garden at Stoke House which has become a Scheduled Ancient Monument. a plaque commemorating There are two From the mid C18 the attractive location of Stoke George Bidder (1); a Tudor Below: Dartmouth Road Below: Chapel Lane areas of group Fleming had been recognised and large houses such type doorway in the wall Tree Preservation as Sanders and Stoke House were built. The effect of surrounding The Old House Orders in this this was that the village became virtually surrounded (2); a mounting block outside conservation area: by substantial grounds and gardens while the centre the Green Dragon (3), all in the south the became built up with terraces of houses built straight provide variation and colour. grounds around onto the streets. Comparison between a modern map 3 Sanders fall within The impact the A379 has and the Tithe map shows that the conservation area is the conservation on the area is considerable surprisingly unaltered from 1886. area boundary; in the north at The Old House, part of a but fortunately the traffi c There has been some modern development outside the group listing comes into the conservation area. seems to come in waves conservation area to the north and a caravan park is and between these the The four prominent Monterey Pines (Pinus radiata) near established close to the conservation area in the south. village immediately reverts the church, though not in the conservation area or offi cially to being a tranquil and protected, are important to the setting of the Conservation attractive rural village. Area. This is discussed in the Management Plan. 2 Stoke Fleming Apprasial Stoke Fleming Apprasial 3 There are nine Listed Key Conservation Components Map - Stoke Fleming Buildings and one Ancient 1 2 3 Scheduled Monument within the conservation area. The proposed boundary extension would mean that Dark Hole Farmhouse (Leonard’s Cove Farmhouse) would be included in the conservation area.

The Church of St. Peter (1) is grade ll* and is probably 4 5 C13. Pevsner refers to the fi ne Perpindicular west tower that has been an historic landmark for ships.

The War Memorial (2) is well placed near the north-west gateway and N there is a monument to mathematician George WE Bidder (3) south of the tower. The Scheduled Ancient Monument, The 6 7 S Site of Chapel at Manor Farm (4) is marked by a section of column in a KEY wall near Manor Close. The Green Dragon (5) Conservation Area Boundary still retains some original and Area of Archaeological Potential features and Sanders (6) Extension to Conservation commands an enviable Area Boundary position overlooking Deletion to Conservation Area Boundary Start Bay. Listed Buildings In the north of the Unlisted buildings with a 9 conservation area The Old 8 Positive impact (includes some House (7) is prominent buildings that have been subject to above enclosing stone inappropriate alterations (eg UPVC walls that are also listed. windows) but contribute positively nonetheless) Further down the hill in Dartmouth Road Bay Important Open Space characterised by lack of House (8), London Inn (9) development within it Old Pound House and Ancient Monument The Stables (10) form an interesting group in the Walls with a positive impact on the conservation area centre of the village. Historic street furniture Dark Hole Farmhouse This map is reproduced from the Ordnance Survey material with the permission of Ordnance Survey on behalf of the Historic street surface (11) (Leonards Cove 10 11 Controller of Her Majesty’s Stationery Office © Crown copyright. Unauthorised reproduction infringes Crown TPO - Tree Preservation Order(s) Farmhouse) is the oldest copyright and may lead to prosecution or civil proceedings. (general location) house in the village. South Hams District Council. LA 079391/2009 Although much altered, the Other Important individual or groups of trees (diagrammatic) house and outbuildings Community Involvement Important garden areas would contribute to This appraisal has been produced with the involvement of the community from the character of the the earliest stages. Views were sought from the children of the Primary School Area with scope for improvement conservation area. Possible and the households of the village. Once the draft appraisal was complete, Distant Views inclusion is discussed in the residents were invited to comment at a public exhibition. Many of the fi ndings Close Views Management Plan which are shown in the Management Plan that accompanies this appraisal. accompanies this appraisal. 4 Stoke Fleming Apprasial Stoke Fleming Apprasial 5 Areas with Sites with Statutory Protection Other Buildings and education and religious instruction Archaeological Potential The site of the medieval manor is a Scheduled Monument, Structures of Special Interest to residents and which the Schedule refers to as “Site of Chapel at Manor Farm”. their children who The archaeological background set out below is based There are several were much more on information currently held in Devon County Council’s unlisted buildings Historic Landscape numerous 100 Historic Environment Record (HER) to date. This which are of interest at years ago. knowledge is likely to evolve and be revised over time. Most of the area around Stoke Fleming are ‘Barton Fields’; Stoke Fleming. large, regular enclosures likely to have been laid out Many other Stoke Fleming is a medieval or earlier settlement that Around the church, between the 15th and the 18th century. interesting features lies within an area of prehistoric activity and contains one Tappers, the row of are constantly Scheduled Monument and numerous listed buildings. cottages opposite and Tappers and adjoining cottages Planning Implications adding to the the ubiquitous stone Any development within or adjacent to the historic core of Former meeting Room character of the Prehistoric and Roman Stoke Fleming walls, contribute to Stoke Fleming will be subject to either predetermination conservation area: the character of the While there is no recorded evidence of prehistoric or archaeological investigation, or PPG16 planning condition. for example a conservation area, Roman sites within the conservation area of Stoke The level of archaeological mitigation will depend upon the drainage grate and are redolent of Fleming, the village lies within an area of prehistoric nature, extent and location of the development as well as made locally a farming era. The activity. Five prehistoric ditched enclosures are located previous disturbance to the site. and an unusual Meeting Room nearby between 1.5 and 2.5km from the villlage centre. Also, door leading to a The above represents an appraisal of the current Historic is also reminiscent an Iron Age univallate hillfort called Woodbury Camp basement fl at in Environment Records as of the date below and does not of earlier times when is located approximately 3km to the north-west of the Chapel Lane. include a defi nite consideration of the listed buildings diverse religious sects village centre. within this area. Pump Cottage were more common Former Chapel and infl uential. Medieval Stoke Fleming Historic Environment Service, Devon County Council, 27 March 2007 In Chapel Lane, Pump Antiquarian and early records refer to the Cottage and the former remains of an earlier manor. They state Chapel are prominent that there was a round column (a broken from many angles scalloped capital standing about 2.4m high) within the village. They of red sandstone with an ornamental top are good examples that was built into the wall of a later farm of buildings in local building located between the church and materials that provided the rectory. The column was thought to Locally made grate Unusual door form part of the aisle arcade of a Norman church or chapel probably associated with Former Activities Today Stoke Fleming a manor, or an aisled hall. has expanded to the and Current Uses north and generally The most recent archaeological provides residential assessments (in 1986 and 1996) found The fi rst inhabitants were farmers who gathered together accommodation for no other traces of a column or capital around a stable water source. The village grew after St. commuters to nearby within the existing fabric of the standing Peter’s was built in the thirteenth century but remained Dartmouth, Kingsbridge barns or any of the farm buildings a village of farmers and fi shermen who made use of and more distant Paignton around the site. Although documentary abundant fi shing at nearby Blackpool Sands. © N.Teage and Torquay. There is references are confused, it seems In the eighteenth century Stoke Fleming evolved from a also a high number of Milking at Sanders beyond doubt that a large high status purely agricultural parish to one that had a large number retired people and second building of presumably Norman date of non-farming residents. People chose to move here from home owners. once existed on this site but whether towns such as Dartmouth. Large houses in substantial The village is greatly ecclesiastical or secular, is unclear. grounds were built. Sanders and Stoke House are two affected by the A379 examples of these and they have had a major infl uence which goes straight on the development of the village and have become an through the conservation important part of the conservation area. Cautionary Note area and sometimes becomes congested in the © N.Teage The formal designation of conservation summer. Although visitors Above and below: The built environment has not changed greatly areas, Listed Buildings, Tree to the village help to Preservation Orders and Scheduled sustain the Post Offi ce/ Ancient Monuments is a continuous shop and the Green process so if you need to be certain Dragon, Stoke Fleming that the designations shown on the is fundamentally a quiet Map are still correct, please check South Hams coastal with the Environment an Development village with residents who Services Group at the District Council. actively support many © N.Teage communal schemes.

6 Stoke Fleming Apprasial Stoke Fleming Apprasial 7 Building Material Assessment The second group around Local South Devon slate is the predominant walling mate- the Post rial in the conservation area. The building style can be Offi ce has divided in three groups. two and three storey houses The western with smooth group at the top rendering which of the village are built front- along Rectory on to the street. Lane, feels quite Roofs are rural and the predominantly Minimal eaves rubble walls of slate with minimal eaves and slate hanging on gable the houses and ends occurs. Some UPVC windows are visible but one cottages have house has recently re-introduced traditional wooden sash mostly remained windows and further similar re-instatement would be unrendered Bitumen coating in Rectory Lane encouraged by the council. although some are painted. The The third section around predominant Chapel Lane has mostly roofi ng material two storey cottages and is slate but some houses with unrendered turnerisation has stone rubble walls, been carried out which are sometimes where slate is painted. Roofs are starting to fail. usually of slate. Sanders, at the One of the most striking Chapel Lane south end of Manor Court characteristics of the Rectory Road, built environment are the is imposing and is high stone walls which built of rendered stone border several lanes. rubble. The converted They create an enclosed outbuildings at Manor atmosphere which is both Court are unrendered attractive and provides stone. residents with a high degree of seclusion. Bay House Chapel Lane walls Areas with Potential This should also help many residents with no for Improvement parking at their properties. It is hoped that the new Some buildings have lost some of their original detail with facility will be discrete and UPVC windows, doors and plastic down-pipes having provide a less obtrusive been introduced. The degree of introduction has however place for re-cycling skips not been excessive in comparison with other areas and and some protection for the further encroachment might be curtailed if an Article 4.2 four Monterey Pines (Pinus direction was imposed. Further discussion and explanation radiata) that contribute so of Article 4.2 status is set out in the Management Plan positively to the landscape which accompanies this appraisal. setting of the church. Large numbers of cars pass through Stoke Fleming on the A379 and the traffi c problems in this village seem insoluble. Ancient passing places in between pinch-points help traffi c to fl ow. Some buildings have been demolished in order to enlarge narrow sections and it is reported that 20 mph road markings have slowed traffi c. Every effort has been made to fi nd a solution and new approaches are constantly examined. Top: Unsightly facilities Local enterprises need visitor support in order to thrive but visitors have diffi culty parking their cars. Car parking Right: Some UPVC windows at Stoke Fleming is inadequate, but plans have been have been submitted for an extension to the small existing car park. introduced

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