1 REGENT’S CANAL CONSERVATION AREA APPRAISAL Urban Design and Conservation Team Regeneration & Planning Division London Borough of Hackney 263 Mare Street London E8 1HT October 2007 Regent’s Canal Conservation Area Appraisal October 2007 2 All images are copyright of Hackney Archives/LB Hackney, unless otherwise stated London Borough Hackney, LA08638X (2006). Regent’s Canal Conservation Area Appraisal October 2007 3 CONTENTS 1 Introduction 1.1 What is a Conservation Area? 1.2 Location and Context of the Conservation Area 1.3 The format of the Conservation Area Appraisal 1.4 Acknowledgments 1.5 Conservation Area Advisory Committees 2 Planning Context 2.1 National Policy 2.2 Local Policies 3 Historic Development of the Area 3.1 Archaeological Significance 3.2 Origins and Historic development 3.3 Geology and Topography 4 The Conservation Area and its Surroundings 4.1 The Surroundings and Setting of the Conservation Area 4.2 General Description of the Conservation Area 4.3 Plan Form and Streetscape 4.4 Views, Focal Points and Focal Buildings 4.5 Landscape and Trees 4.6 Activities and Uses 5 The Buildings of the Conservation Area 5.1 Introduction 5.2 Listed buildings 5.3 Buildings of Local Significance 5.4 Buildings of Townscape Merit 6 “SWOT” Analysis 6.1 Strengths 6.2 Weaknesses 6.3 Opportunities 6.4 Threats 7 Conclusion Map of Regent’s Canal Conservation Area Regent’s Canal Conservation Area Appraisal October 2007 4 APPENDICES Appendix A Historic Maps of the Regent’s Canal Conservation Area Appendix B Schedule of Listed and Locally Listed Buildings and Buildings of Townscape Merit Appendix C Bibliography Appendix D List of illustrations Appendix E Further information Regent’s Canal Conservation Area Appraisal October 2007 5 1 INTRODUCTION The Regent’s Canal Conservation Area was designated by the London Borough of Hackney in 2007. It comprises a unique linear green corridor that runs for almost 4km right through the southern part of the borough and provides important public amenity space both on the water and along the towpath. It is a place of ecological diversity that brings plants and wildlife into the heart of the city. As industrial transport has declined, wildlife has increased. Like all London’s canals, the Regent’s Canal and its basins were identified by the GLA in 2002 as a Site of Metropolitan Importance for Nature Conservation. The Hackney stretch of the canal is just a couple of miles of a 3,000 mile network of inland waterways that cover much of England. Canals are a public asset and they are managed on behalf on the general public by British Waterways. The Regent’s Canal in Hackney is well used by the local community, boaters and commuters who use the towpath for cycling and walking to work. Along some sections of the canal and on the basins are surviving 19th and early 20th century warehouses and industrial buildings, many formerly associated with the furniture and building trades, which dominated the canal-side wharves of Hackney at this time. There is great pressure on the traditional characteristics and uses of the canal. It is no longer used for freight and despite pleasure craft using the waterway, the industrial nature of the canal and adjacent buildings has been lost. A growing trend is the total or partial demolition of old factories and warehouses on sites beside the canal and their replacement with new housing developments. Often large in scale, as on the former Gainsborough Studios site adjacent to New North Road, these new developments are altering the character of the Regent’s Canal and that of its immediate environs. Fig. 1: General view of the Regent’s Canal looking towards Queensbridge Road Bridge It is a surprise to many, given current recreational use that the canal towpath was a private space until the late 1960s. Opening the canals was a national policy following on from the 1968 Transport Act. It was not until the 1970s that a decision was made by the borough council to open up the canal to the people of Hackney as an Regent’s Canal Conservation Area Appraisal October 2007 6 aesthetically acceptable leisure link. The Greater London Council established the London Canals Consultative Committee under the chairmanship of Iltyd Harrington in 1966. The government took a few years longer to recognise the amenity value of the canal. In 1967 The Regent’s Canal – a Policy for its Future was published by the Regent’s Canal Group, a body composed of societies interested in the waterways in Paddington, Islington, St Pancras and Hackney, together with the London branch of the inland Waterways Association and the Civic Trust. In 1968 Westminster Council opened the first stretch of the Regent’s Canal towpath from Lisson Grove to Regent’s Park. The route between Islington Tunnel and Limehouse was completed in 1982 as the Canalway Project. Up to that date the canal through Hackney (as private property) had been isolated from adjacent housing areas by high wire fencing and other obstacles; much of the towpath was crumbling and falling into the canal and it was considered unsafe to allow public access immediately after the 1968 Transport Act. Fig. 2: The towpath in 1975 Although the Regent’s Canal itself has altered little since its completion in 1820, once commercial traffic ceased in the 1960s, the industrial use of the canal almost ended. The associated timber and builders wharves and warehouses that have lined the banks and basins of the canal for almost 180 years are changing in nature. Some are disappearing, being replaced by new housing developments beside the waterway. Other smaller factories and former industrial buildings close to the canal are being turned into studios, restaurants and live/work units, although some factories such as that of Thomas Briggs near Rosemary Branch Bridge continue to trade. Research and assessment of the area’s special nature undertaken for this appraisal, has enabled a detailed consideration of the boundaries of the Conservation Area to be undertaken and a better definition of the special character that the area encompasses. Regent’s Canal Conservation Area Appraisal October 2007 7 1.1 What is a conservation area? A Conservation Area is an area of special architectural or historic interest, the character or appearance of which it is desirable to preserve or enhance. Conservation Areas are very much part of the familiar and cherished local scene. It is the area as a whole rather than the specific buildings that is of special interest. Listed Buildings within Conservation Areas are also covered by the Listed Building Consent process. The special character of these areas does not come from the quality of their buildings alone. The historic layout of roads, paths and boundaries; characteristic building and paving materials; a particular 'mix' of building uses; public and private spaces, such as gardens, parks and greens; and trees and street furniture, which contribute to particular views - all these and more make up the familiar local scene. Conservation Areas give broader protection than listing individual buildings: all the features listed or otherwise, within the area, are recognised as part of its character. Conservation Areas enjoy special protection under the law. Below are some of the key requirements for works in conservation areas: • You will need Conservation Area Consent to demolish a building in a conservation area. LB Hackney will seek to keep all buildings that make a positive contribution to the character and appearance of a conservation area. • You must give six weeks notice, in writing, before any work is carried out to lop, top or fell a tree in a conservation area. You can contact the Council’s Tree Officer for advice and help. For further details see our page on trees. • You will need to demonstrate that any development proposal preserves or enhances the character or appearance of a Conservation Area. Hackney has greater control over building work in Conservation Areas, including materials and detailed design. • You may need to apply for planning permission for alterations or extensions that would not normally need planning permission, such as minor roof alterations, dormer windows or a satellite dish. If you are in any doubt about whether you need planning permission, you should contact the duty planner. • Hackney also has greater control over the erection of advertisements and signs. For instance, Hackney has the power to control shop signs, posters or estate agents boards that would not normally need permission. 1.2 Location and Context of the Conservation Area The Regent’s Canal Conservation Area runs across Southern Hackney from Victoria Park in the east to Islington in the west and forms part of Regent’s Canal which runs from Limehouse Basin on the Thames to Paddington Basin in the west. Within Hackney there are 21 hectares of canal, including the towpath and the grassy banks beside it. A number of existing Conservation Areas within Hackney and Islington lie adjacent to or very close to the Regent’s Canal Conservation Area. These include Kingsland Road Conservation Area and Broadway Market Conservation Area in Hackney. In the adjacent borough of Islington, the Duncan Terrace and Colebrooke Row Conservation Area includes the canal and City Road Basin immediately adjacent to the Hackney borough boundary and the Arlington Square Conservation Area lies just to the north-west of the Rosemary Branch Bridge. To the east in Tower Regent’s Canal Conservation Area Appraisal October 2007 8 Hamlets, Victoria Park Conservation Area includes the part of the Regent’s Canal that runs through Victoria Park. The Regent’s Canal is a broad canal of between 40 and 60 feet, with a minimum width in the locks and bridges of 14 feet 6 inches.