Heritage at Risk in Essex Register 2010
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Heritage at Risk in Essex Register 2010 February 2011 Heritage at Risk in Essex 2010 The Heritage at Risk Register contains details of buildings and Scheduled Ancient Monuments known to be ‘at risk’ through neglect and decay, or vulnerable to becoming so. The 2010 register expands the coverage of the register by including non-listed buildings in Conservation Area and buildings on a local list. It also aims to have a more holistic view on the historic environment in response to new heritage legislation, by promoting the inclusion of Scheduled Ancient Monuments on the register. The objective of the Register is to highlight the plight of these buildings and initiate action towards securing their long-term conservation. In many cases such action would be best brought about by a change of owner, and any individual or group seriously contemplating acquiring a building listed as For Sale in the Register should contact the relevant conservation officer listed under Contact. The Register is not, however, intended as a marketing document and those who wish to acquire an “old building” to restore may be best served by contacting local estate agents. The reasons why a heritage asset becomes ‘at risk’ can be many and varied and whilst each individual case is unique, there are some recurring factors. Wilful neglect and the refusal to repair their buildings are the most obvious cause. However changes in industry, technology, demography and governmental legislation can lead to buildings becoming functionally redundant and at risk. Location can be another cause of a building becoming ‘at risk’. A building may be blighted by its surroundings, through changes in economy or as a result of insensitive development. Re-use of buildings within the curtilage of a larger building on private land can present problems, particularly if restrictions in access onto or within the site preclude a change of ownership. A different sort of problem is posed by buildings situated within areas classed as economically deprived. Here, however, the repair and reuse of historic buildings can act as a catalyst for regeneration and there are many examples where run-down buildings have been transformed into desirable living and working spaces, securing the future of the building and providing social and economic benefits to the wider community. As such these restorations can play an important role in sustainability and contribute through sympathetic schemes quality and character to the local environment. When a new use for a redundant building is identified, proposals should be sustainable and sympathetic to the buildings historic and architectural integrity. Conservation staff listed in the Contacts will be able to advise on how to conserve and best repair these vulnerable historic structures and bring them back into use. The 2010 Register The number of ‘heritage assets ‘at risk’ in 2010 is given in Table 1, along with the 2010 and 2009 figures for comparison. It should be borne in mind that the Register addresses a ‘moving target’ and as some heritage assets are repaired and taken off, others become ‘at risk’ and are added. While, in a sense, the success of the Register may be measured in the number of heritage assets added, both the success and failure of the actions taken to conserve these heritage assets is reflected in the numbers removed (Table 2). The tables displayed below provide a useful ‘snapshot’ of the present situation within the county. I Table 1. Heritage at Risk 2010 Administrative At Risk Area 2010 2009 2008 Basildon 3 4 2 Braintree 19 21 23 Brentwood 9 9 9 Castle Point 0 0 0 Chelmsford 25 15 12 Colchester 48 49 36 Epping Forest 23 23 23 Harlow 4 2 2 Maldon 15 10 11 Rochford 8 7 7 Southend 17 8 1 Tendring 33 26 28 Thurrock* 17 17 17 Uttlesford 18 16 16 TOTAL 239 207 187 Table 2. Heritage Assets removed and added from the BARR 2009- 2010 by District Administrative No Longer At Risk Newly At Risk Area 2010 2009 2008 2010 2009 2008 Basildon 1 0 0 0 2 0 Braintree 2 2 4 0 0 0 Brentwood 0 0 1 0 0 1 Castle Point 0 0 0 0 0 0 Chelmsford 0 0 4 10 3 0 Colchester 2 0 2 1 13 0 Epping Forest 0 0 0 0 0 7 Harlow 0 0 0 2 0 0 Maldon 0 1 0 5 0 1 Rochford 0 0 2 1 0 0 Southend 0 0 0 9 7 1 Tendring 3 2 0 10 0 2 Thurrock* 0 0 0 0 0 0 Uttlesford 0 0 1 2 0 1 TOTAL 8 5 14 40 25 13 (* Updated figures have not been produced) Although the buildings recorded on the Register are in a constant state of flux, it is clear that the total number ‘at risk’ between 2009 and 2010 has increased substantially. The II primary reason for the large number of new additions to the register is the inclusion of non-listed buildings in a conservation area and buildings of local interest. Between Southend, Chelmsford, Tendring and a total of 13 un-listed buildings in a conservation area where deemed to be ‘at risk’ and were added to the register. In Southend, Maldon and Chelmsford a further 5 locally listed buildings were added. To put this in context, there were 24 new additions to the register that are statutory designations. To put the present situation into a wider context, the 214 statutorily designated heritage assets currently ‘at risk’ comprise 1.4% of the total 15,154 in Essex. Comparison on a national level is presently not possible as outside London, English Heritage only publish figures for grade I, II* Listed Buildings and Scheduled Ancient Monuments. The Essex statistics however, show that 22 or 2.2% of the 14318 grade I, II* & II listed buildings in the county are currently ‘at risk’. This figure falls just over the 1.8% to 2.1% figure published for the East of England, South-East and South West and considerably lower than the national statistic of 3.1%. Table 3. Buildings at Risk by Priority Administrative 2010 2009 Area A B C D E A B C D E F F Basildon 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 2 0 0 1 Braintree 8 0 5 2 4 0 9 0 5 2 4 0 Brentwood 4 0 4 1 0 0 5 0 4 1 0 0 Castle Point 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Chelmsford 3 1 11 9 1 0 3 1 9 0 2 0 Colchester 13 1 23 7 2 1 18 0 21 5 3 1 Epping Forest 6 2 12 0 2 1 5 2 10 0 2 1 Harlow 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 Maldon 4 1 6 1 3 0 4 1 3 1 1 0 Rochford 0 0 4 4 0 0 0 0 3 4 0 0 Southend 3 1 12 0 1 0 2 0 5 0 0 0 Tendring 14 0 16 1 0 2 0 0 11 3 0 0 Thurrock 10 0 5 0 2 0 10 0 5 0 2 0 Uttlesford 8 0 6 4 0 0 6 0 6 4 0 0 TOTAL 76 6 106 29 15 5 64 4 85 20 14 3 The 2010 total of 239 buildings at risk is an increase from last years figure (207).On a positive note 8 heritage assets were removed from the register for 2010, 3 more than last year. Notable achievements during 2009-10 include the extensive repairs using THI funding of Orwell House, Dovercourt. The Electric Palace, Harwich has been removed from the register following completion of its repair and renovation. Whilst these cases are encouraging, figures show that almost half of the buildings on the register have been designated as ‘at risk’ for over ten years, and over a third of the buildings are categorised Priority A (see Table 3) and in immediate risk of chronic deterioration or loss of fabric. It is hoped that works to improve the very important Marconi Building on New Street Chelmsford will soon be in place, and it can be removed from the register. Clearly, unless conservation measures are put in place now many of these important and irreplaceable buildings will be lost. III Buildings removed July 2009- August 2010 Basildon Great Chalvedon Hall, Pitsea, Basildon (R) Colchester Barrack Building B, Le Cateau Barracks, Colchester (C) Barn to the SW of Little Tey House, Marks Tey (R) Braintree St Michaels Hospital, Braintree (R) Tendring 36- 38 Colchester Road, St. Osyth (R) Electric Palace, Harwich (R) Cinque Ports Wreck House, Brightlingsea (R) C= Converted; R = Repaired; CO= Collapsed; B= Burnt Down; D= Demolished Buildings Added July 2009 - August 2010 Chelmsford The Anne Knight Building, New Street, Chelmsford Marconi Offices, New Street, Chelmsford 7 and 8 Wharf Road, Chelmsford 1 Queen Street, Chelmsford St, John’s Hospital, Wood Street, Chelmsford Wickham House, Runsell Green, Danbury Garnetts Farmhouse, Mashbury Road, Great Waltham Whitewebs Cottage, Main Road, Margaretting Bulimers Farm Barn, Ongar Road, Writtle Colchester Little Oaks Barn, School Lane, Langham Maldon United Reformed Church Chapel, Heybridge Basin Franciscan Convent, West Chase, Maldon 43– 45, High Street, Former Post Office, Maldon Bourchiers Barn, Tollesbury Hope Inn, High Street, Tollesbury Rochford St. Mary’s Church, Foulness Southend 22- 24 Leigh Hill, Leigh-on-Sea 26 Leigh Hill, Leigh-on-Sea 28 Leigh Hill, Leigh-on-Sea 30- 34 Leigh Hill, Leigh-on-Sea The Bell Hotel, 20 Leigh Hill, Leigh-on-Sea The Golden Lion, Victoria Avenue, Southend 59- 61 East Street, Southend 121 Ness Road, Shoeburyness 19 St.