Carlisle Rural Masterplanning Settlement
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Carlisle District: Rural Masterplanning BURGH BY SANDS BURGH BY SANDS Figure 1: Location of Burgh by Sands January 2013 Page 1 Carlisle District: Rural Masterplanning BURGH BY SANDS Settlement Profile: Strategic position Historically, Burgh by Sands has occupied a very important strategic location. Roman military encampments were placed at this strategic location on Hadrian‟s Wall round Burgh by Sands to guard two nearby Solway becks. There are also two earlier auxiliary forts and a number of marching camps. The heritage value of the settlement continues from the visitor perspective. Burgh by Sands is a linear settlement, just over 6 miles west of Carlisle that extends along a minor road that continues round the coast of the Solway Firth. The settlement centre is at the cross-roads junction with a minor north-south road. To the north, the road heads towards the River Eden and loops round south again to Beaumont, but there is no crossing of the River Eden to head north without returning via Carlisle city centre bridge. Burgh by Sands‟ position on a minor road to the coast means it does not play a strategic role in the area. The settlement does however now play an important role locally with the primary school covering a wide area of neighboring parishes. The Church, pub and local garage are also locally significant. The Cumbrian Coastal Way and the Hadrian‟s Wall National Trail pass right through the centre of the village along the main east-west street. The Hadrian‟s Wall World Heritage Site and Vallum pass through the settlement. Burgh by Sands was on the Carlisle Navigation canal from 1823 to 1853, after which it was served by the Port Carlisle railway (until its closure in 1964), which was built on the bed of the canal. The alignment of the disused railway is apparent from former bridge crossings on the edge of the village and further west from the straight alignment of the Cumbrian Coastal Way and the Hadrian‟s Wall Path passing Burgh Marsh between Dykesfield (west of Burgh by Sands) and Drumburgh, which use the former railway route. General description of settlement The whole settlement is in the Hadrian‟s Wall Military Zone World Heritage Site Buffer Zone. The village has a diverse age range and structure of buildings, with a high proportion of old properties and more than 30 grade II listed buildings and monuments. A conservation area extends over the vast majority of the settlement and also covers areas not developed to the north and the south of the current settlement edge. The entire settlement except for the primary school (which forms the very southern settlement edge) and more recent housing along the road to the south is within the Solway Coast Area of outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) boundary. The grade 1 listed St. Michael's Church occupies a prominent central site and was built within the Roman fort on Hadrian‟s Wall, using stones taken from the fort and the Wall, marking the location of the southern defenses of the fort. This church is most unusual formerly having two towers, one at either end. A 1760 watchtower, the construction of which is ambiguous, nestles within the built form of the settlement. The oldest buildings are agricultural in origin, farms and farm buildings. The settlement has an air of affluence, with visible renovations of older properties, tidy gardens and vegetable plots and an abundance of mature trees in the older parts of the settlement. January 2013 Page 2 Carlisle District: Rural Masterplanning BURGH BY SANDS Burgh-by-Sands is made up of several historic smaller settlements, which occupied positions along the east-west road and the north-south road. Infill has taken place during different eras and this adds to the diversity that creates a striking sense of place. The only public open space, on the main street, is a flat grass area with a backdrop of evergreen trees. A bronze statue of Edward I, to commemorate the 700th anniversary of the death of King Edward I (7th July 1307) is located at the western end of the Village Green. Large gardens provide much private greenspace within the settlement. Topographical and landscape context The settlement is contained on the west by a series of small hills, rising 10 to 15 metres above the settlement itself. To the east the land falls gently to the valley of Powburgh Beck, which flows north. Beyond the small hills to the north west lies the estuary of the River Eden where it joins the Solway Firth. This includes some 1500 acres of rich alluvial marshland, which is also part of the internationally important Upper Solway Flats and Marshes. The importance of the Solway landscape is reflected in designations including the Solway Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and in Scotland the three coastal National Scenic Areas. The landscape surrounding Burgh by Sands is agricultural with fairly large field pattern and dividing hedges and some mature trees. The farmland landscape is scattered with C18 and C19 farms and houses, evidence of the agricultural prosperity of the area during that period. There is a series of water courses all eventually flowing to the Solway Firth, westwards and northwards. Straight drainage ditches are a feature of the area to the west of Burgh by Sands and the former canal/railway forms a long straight, distinctive element crossing the landscape to the west. There are many other footpaths crossing the farmland mainly following field boundaries. The settlement itself has abundant green infrastructure, one flat open space and large gardens with mature trees. Biodiversity The Solway Firth carries multiple national and international conservation designations including European Marine Site Special Area of Conservation (SAC), Special Protection Area (SPA), Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and Ramsar wetlands, some of which span the national boundary to Scotland. The Solway Firth is one of the largest, least industrialised and most natural sandy estuaries in Europe. It has internationally important populations of waterfowl including barnacle geese, whooper swan and golden plover. The estuary is also important for migratory fish including sea trout and salmon. Within the village, the large gardens and mature trees provide some richness to the biodiversity in the immediate vicinity of the settlement, which will provide biological corridors for wildlife. The topographical variation, water courses and hedgerows contribute some biodiversity in the area surrounding the settlement, although the farmland areas will be less varied. Burgh by Sands is in close proximity to the Solway Firth. The SSSI and SPA boundaries are at Dykesfield, a mere half mile from the western edge of Burgh by Sands. January 2013 Page 3 Carlisle District: Rural Masterplanning BURGH BY SANDS Tourist features/context The area is steeped with heritage and ecological interest. The course of Hadrian's Wall runs right through the village and the Church is on the site of a former hill fort. Aerial photographs reveal the outline of a large Roman fort on top of the commanding hill to the south of Burgh by Sands village. There is also evidence of a Roman four-post watch tower with a circular ditch, generally considered to be part of the initial scheme for Hadrian‟s Wall. Burgh-by-Sands is famous as the place where Edward I was brought after his death (the king's body was brought to lie in state in the fortified church, until its eventual removal to Westminster Abbey). At the end of the River Eden, at the Solway Firth, is an impressive stone monument, which marks the death-site of Edward I, the 'Hammer of the Scots'. A bronze statue of Edward I also stands in the Village Green. There are pleasant round trip walks along farm tracks taking in the points of interest. The path of former alignment of the canal, then the railway now forms the Cumbrian Coastal Way and the Hadrian‟s Wall National Trail. The relief of the area and relatively quiet roads also favour cycling. The Solway coast is also an important focal point for other aspects of tourism and leisure including recreational sea angling, sailing, bird-watching and general nature conservation interest. The coast, Finlandrigg Woods, Drumburgh Moss, South Solway Mosses National Narture Reserves (NNRs), are all less than 5 miles away. B&B accommodation is available within the village in addition there is a camping barn located in the small village of Boustead Hill, near Burgh by Sands. Settlement dependencies The primary school is situated in the south of Burgh by Sands. It has a large catchment area, covering all the neighbouring villages and hamlets such as Kirkbampton (2.3 miles), Grinsdale (3.8 miles), Longburgh (1.3 miles), Beaumont (2.1 miles), Kirkandrews on Eden (2.1 miles) and beyond, into the western side of Carlisle (6.9 miles). There is a garage, a post office (open 2 days per week), a village hall and a public house. Residents of Burgh by Sands will otherwise be dependent on Carlisle as the nearest centre with a much fuller range of services and shops. The settlement has the feel of relatively affluent commuter residents. January 2013 Page 4 Carlisle District: Rural Masterplanning BURGH BY SANDS CABE1 Pre-consultation Comments on Scope for new development The settlement is covered by a number of heritage and landscape designations, which may constrain or work against development in any direction. These are river floodplains to the north west and the east; conservation area over most of the settlement and some of the surrounding farmland; the Solway Coast AONB (covering all the settlement and its northern environs to the coast); the Hadrian‟s Wall Military Zone World Heritage Site and the Hadrian‟s Wall Site Buffer Zone; and an area of Scheduled and other Nationally Important Monuments.