Heritage Strategy (May 2017 DRAFT)
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Ashford Borough Council Heritage Strategy (May 2017 DRAFT) Contents Executive Summary ................................................................................................... 5 1. Ashford’s Heritage Offer ...................................................................................... 7 1.1 Introduction ................................................................................................ 7 1.2 What is a Heritage Asset? ......................................................................... 8 1.3 Aims of this Heritage Strategy ................................................................... 9 1.4 Structure of this Strategy ......................................................................... 10 1.5 Policy Context .......................................................................................... 11 2. Ashford’s Heritage ............................................................................................. 16 2.1 Overview of the History of Ashford Borough ............................................ 16 2.2 The Heritage Assets of the Borough ........................................................ 25 2.3 Local Heritage Lists ................................................................................. 31 3. Heritage Themes ............................................................................................... 33 3.1 Categorisation of heritage assets into broad themes ............................... 33 3.2 Assessment of Significance ..................................................................... 36 3.3 Participation and engagement ................................................................. 39 4. Prehistory and Archaeology .............................................................................. 42 5. Farming and Farmsteads .................................................................................. 49 6. Routeways ........................................................................................................ 58 7. Historic Houses and Gardens ........................................................................... 69 8. Ecclesiastical Heritage ...................................................................................... 76 9. Industry and Commerce .................................................................................... 91 10. Invasion and Defence .................................................................................. 102 11. The Railway ................................................................................................. 109 12. Vulnerabilities and Opportunities ................................................................. 115 12.1 Vulnerabilities ..................................................................................... 115 12.2 Generic Vulnerabilities ........................................................................ 115 12.3 Specific Vulnerabilities ........................................................................ 116 12.4 Opportunities ...................................................................................... 118 13. Taking the Heritage Strategy Forward ......................................................... 125 13.1 Introduction ......................................................................................... 125 13.2 Relationship with other Borough Council Strategies ........................... 125 2 13.3 Heritage Strategy Objectives .............................................................. 127 13.4 Objective One ..................................................................................... 127 13.5 Objective Two ..................................................................................... 129 13.6 Objective Three .................................................................................. 131 13.7 Objective Four .................................................................................... 133 14. Conclusions ................................................................................................. 139 14.1 What next? ......................................................................................... 139 14.2 Next steps, stakeholders and ownership of delivery ........................... 139 14.3 Programming, monitoring and review ................................................. 140 14.4 Funding and resources ....................................................................... 140 Bibliography ........................................................................................................... 143 APPENDIX 1 .......................................................................................................... 145 Scheduled Monuments ................................................................................... 145 APPENDIX 2 .......................................................................................................... 148 Registered Parks and Gardens ....................................................................... 148 APPENDIX 3 .......................................................................................................... 149 Conservation Areas ......................................................................................... 149 APPENDIX 4 .......................................................................................................... 150 Historic Towns Survey Maps ........................................................................... 150 Table 1: Total number of listed building entries by Local Authority in Kent ................ 7 Table 2: Structure of this Strategy ............................................................................ 11 Table 3: Heritage Assets on Historic England's 'Heritage at Risk' Register 2017 ..... 26 3 Figure 1: Willesborough Windmill. .............................................................................. 6 Figure 2: Roman bull figure found by the Great Stour in Godinton Park) ................. 19 Figure 3: PLUTO routes across the Channel ........................................................... 24 Figure 4: Areas of Archaeological Potential ............................................................. 30 Figure 5: Workshop held at Woodchurch on 3rd November 2016 ............................ 40 Figure 6: Warrior burial during excavation at Brisley Farm ....................................... 41 Figure 7: 'Prospect of Julabers Grave from Chilham May 24 1725' ......................... 46 Figure 8: Farmhouse in the east of the borough. ..................................................... 48 Figure 9: Distribution of Lookers' Huts in the Marsh area ......................................... 56 Figure 10: Sunken track through the North Downs Way .......................................... 57 Figure 11: The Gough Map (circa 1360) .................................................................. 58 Figure 12: Supposed route of the Pilgrim's Way ...................................................... 60 Figure 13: Main Roman routes through Kent ........................................................... 64 Figure 14: Layout of the Palace Complex, Charing .................................................. 67 Figure 15: Godinton House and Gardens ................................................................. 68 Figure 16: Priest (Pest) House at St Mary the Virgin, Great Chart ........................... 75 Figure 17: Ashford Cattle Market in the High Street ................................................. 90 Figure 18: Gas cylinder gate post at Chilmington Green, ....................................... 101 Figure 19: Entrance to the South Eastern Railway Works (circa 1910) .................. 108 Figure 20: The borough's railway lines ................................................................... 112 Figure 21: Charing Archbishop's Palace Great Hall, December 2016. ................... 114 Figure 22: Map showing the route of the Ashford Heritage Trail through the town . 123 Figure 23: The Hubert Fountain, Victoria Park, Ashford.. ....................................... 124 Figure 24: Open gates at Victoria Park, Ashford .................................................... 138 4 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Ashford Borough is home to an extraordinarily rich and significant stock of heritage assets which provide important and wide-ranging evidence of the rural history of this country and its tapestry of rural settlements. The Borough’s heritage is extensive too, with more listed buildings than any other in Kent, and with more grade 1 and II* listed buildings than other districts also. This Heritage Strategy describes the rich history of Ashford Borough and its broad wealth of heritage assets. In doing so it responds to, and is compliant with the requirement for a ‘positive strategy for the conservation and enjoyment of the historic environment’ promoted by the NPPF. It sets out how the historic environment can play an important role in delivering regeneration in the Borough, particularly supporting the objectives of the Local Plan for the regeneration of Ashford Town Centre, and the role of heritage in growing the tourism offer of the Borough. Having regard to the Government’s localism agenda, the Strategy promotes an agenda of further understanding and engagement with the historic environment, where the public play a leading role in delivering the outcomes of the strategy and shaping where they live, work and visit. Ashford’s attractive natural environment, including two Areas of Outstanding