Archaeological Desk-Based Assessment Land at Chapel
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ARCHAEOLOGICAL DESK-BASED ASSESSMENT LAND AT CHAPEL STREET ROCKLAND ST PETER NORFOLK APRIL 2014 Planning ● Heritage Specialist & Independent Advisors to the Property Industry Planning Authority: Breckland District Council Site centred at: TL99029739 Author: Suzanne Gailey BA (Hons) MA MIFA Approved by: Paul Chadwick BA (Hons) FSA MIFA Report Status: Final Issue Date: April 2014 CgMs Ref: 17097 © CgMs Limited No part of this report is to be copied in any way without prior written consent. Every effort is made to provide detailed and accurate information, however, CgMs Limited cannot be held responsible for errors or inaccuracies within this report. © Ordnance Survey maps reproduced with the sanction of the controller of HM Stationery Office. Licence No: AL 100014723 Archaeological Desk Based Assessment Land at Chapel Street, Rockland St Peter CONTENTS Executive Summary 1.0 Introduction and Scope of Study 2.0 Planning Background and Development Plan Framework 3.0 Geology and Topography 4.0 Archaeological and Historical Background, including Assessment of Significance 5.0 Site Conditions, the Proposed Development and Impact on Heritage Assets 6.0 Summary and Conclusions Sources Consulted APPENDIX 1: HER Location Plan (Norfolk HER 2014) LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Fig. 1 Site location Fig. 2 1797 Faden’s map Fig. 3 1826 Bryant’s map Fig. 4 1838 Rockland St Peter Tithe Map Fig. 5 1883 Ordnance Survey Fig. 6 1906 Ordnance Survey Fig. 7 1979 Ordnance Survey Fig. 8 Site as Existing Fig. 9 Aerial Photograph of the study site (GoogleEarth 2006) LIST OF PLATES Plate 1 South facing photograph along access into the site taken from Chapel Street Plate 2 East facing photograph looking along northern boundary of development site CgMs Limited © 1 SG/17097 Archaeological Desk Based Assessment Land at Chapel Street, Rockland St Peter Plate 3 South facing photograph looking along western boundary of study site Plate 4 North-east facing photograph taken from south western corner of study site Plate 5 West facing photograph looking along southern boundary of study site CgMs Limited © 2 SG/17097 Archaeological Desk Based Assessment Land at Chapel Street, Rockland St Peter EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This report considers the archaeological implications of a proposal to develop on land at Chapel Street, Rockland St Peter. The available archaeological, historic, and topographic information indicates that there are no designated or non-designated heritage assets on the study site. The site has the potential for as yet to be discovered archaeological assets of a local significance and therefore falls within the scope of Policy BE17. In these circumstances, it can be anticipated that the planning authority’s archaeological advisor will require an archaeological evaluation of the site. CgMs Limited © 3 SG/17097 Archaeological Desk Based Assessment Land at Chapel Street, Rockland St Peter 1.0 INTRODUCTION AND SCOPE OF STUDY 1.1 This archaeological desk-based assessment has been prepared by Suzanne Gailey of CgMs Consulting on behalf of Bowbridge Land Ltd. 1.2 The assessment considers land at Chapel Street, Rockland St Peter, Norfolk. The site, also referred to as the study site, is 0.76ha in extent and is bounded to the north by Chapel Street and houses fronting onto Chapel Street, to the east by houses fronting onto Chapel Street and to the west and south by agricultural land. The site is centred at National Grid Reference TL99029739 (Fig 1). 1.3 In accordance with government policy, National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), this assessment draws together the available archaeological, historic, topographic and land-use information in order to clarify the archaeological potential of the site. 1.4 Additionally, in accordance with the ‘Standard and Guidance for Historic Environment Desk-Based Assessments’ (Institute for Archaeologists 1999, revised 2012), the assessment includes an examination of published and unpublished material and charts historic land-use through a map regression exercise. A site inspection was undertaken in April 2014. 1.5 As a result, the assessment enables relevant parties to assess the significance of archaeological assets on and close to the site, assess the potential for hitherto undiscovered archaeological assets and thus enable potential impacts on assets to be identified along with the need for design, civil engineering or archaeological solutions. CgMs Limited © 4 SG/17097 Archaeological Desk Based Assessment Land at Chapel Street, Rockland St Peter 2.0 PLANNING BACKGROUND AND DEVELOPMENT PLAN FRAMEWORK 2.1 In March 2012, the government published the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), this was supplemented by Planning Practice Guidance (PPG) in March 2014. 2.1.1 Section 12 of the NPPF, entitled Conserving and enhancing the historic environment provides guidance for planning authorities, property owners, developers and others on the conservation and investigation of heritage assets. Overall, the objectives of Section 12 of the NPPF can be summarised as seeking the: x Delivery of sustainable development x Understanding the wider social, cultural, economic and environmental benefits brought by the conservation of the historic environment x Conservation of England's heritage assets in a manner appropriate to their significance, and x Recognition that heritage makes to our knowledge and understanding of the past. 2.1.2 Section 12 of the NPPF recognises that intelligently managed change may sometimes be necessary if heritage assets are to be maintained for the long term. Paragraph 128 states that planning decisions should be based on the significance of the heritage asset and that level of detail supplied by an applicant should be proportionate to the importance of the asset and should be no more than sufficient to review the potential impact of the proposal upon the significance of that asset. 2.1.3 Heritage Assets are defined in Annex 2 of the NPPF as: a building, monument, site, place, area or landscape positively identified as having a degree of significance meriting consideration in planning decisions. They include designated heritage assets (as defined in the NPPF) and assets identified by the local planning authority during the process of decision-making or through the plan-making process. 2.1.4 Annex 2 also defines Archaeological Interest as a heritage asset which holds or potentially could hold evidence of past human activity worthy of expert investigation at some point. Heritage assets with archaeological interest are the primary source of evidence about the substance and evolution of places, and of the people and cultures that made them. 2.1.5 A Designated Heritage Asset comprises a: World Heritage Site, Scheduled Monument, Listed Building, Protected Wreck Site, Registered Park and Garden, Registered Battlefield or Conservation Area. CgMs Limited © 5 SG/17097 Archaeological Desk Based Assessment Land at Chapel Street, Rockland St Peter 2.1.6 Significance is defined as: The value of a heritage asset to this and future generations because of its heritage interest. This interest may be archaeological, architectural, artistic or historic. Significance derives not only from a heritage asset’s physical presence, but also from its setting. 2.1.7 In short, government policy provides a framework which: x Protects nationally important designated Heritage Assets (which include World Heritage Sites, Scheduled Ancient Monuments, Listed Buildings, Protected Wreck Sites, Registered Parks and Gardens, Registered Battlefields or Conservation Areas) x Protects the settings of such designations x In appropriate circumstances seeks adequate information (from desk based assessment and field evaluation where necessary) to enable informed decisions x Provides for the excavation and investigation of sites not significant enough to merit in-situ preservation. 2.2 In considering any planning application for development, the planning authority will be mindful of the framework set by government policy, in this instance the NPPF, by current Development Plan Policy and by other material considerations. 2.3 The Breckland District Council Core Strategy was adopted in December 2009 and contains the following relevant Policy: Policy DC 17 HISTORIC ENVIRONMENT ANY DEVELOPMENT THAT WILL AFFECT A LISTED BUILDING OR A CONSERVATION AREA WILL BE SUBJECT TO COMPREHENSIVE ASSESSMENT. NEW DEVELOPMENT WILL BE EXPECTED TO PRESERVE AND ENHANCE THE CHARACTER, APPEARANCE AND SETTING OF CONSERVATION AREAS, SCHEDULED MONUMENTS, HISTORIC PARKS AND GARDENS AND OTHER AREAS OF HISTORIC INTEREST. WHERE A PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT WILL AFFECT THE CHARACTER OR SETTING OF A LISTED BUILDING, PARTICULAR REGARD WILL NEED TO BE GIVEN TO THE PROTECTION, PRESERVATION AND ENHANCEMENT OF ANY FEATURES OF HISTORIC OR ARCHITECTURAL INTEREST. THE CONVERSION OF BUILDINGS OF PARTICULAR ARCHITECTURAL OR HISTORIC MERIT FOR ECONOMIC OR RESIDENTIAL PURPOSES IN LOCATIONS THAT WOULD OTHERWISE BE UNACCEPTABLE WILL BE CONSIDERED WHERE THIS WOULD ENSURE THE RETENTION OF THE BUILDING. PROPOSALS WILL BE CONSIDERED AGAINST RELEVANT GUIDANCE INCLUDING NATIONAL POLICY ADVICE (CURRENTLY PPS7 & PPG15) AND SPECIALIST PUBLICATIONS SUCH AS ‘ENABLING DEVELOPMENT AND THE CONSERVATION OF SIGNIFICANT PLACES’ PRODUCED BY ENGLISH HERITAGE. SITES OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL INTEREST AND THEIR SETTINGS WILL BE PROTECTED, ENHANCED AND PRESERVED; DEVELOPMENT WHICH HAS AN UNACCEPTABLE IMPACT UPON A SITE OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL INTEREST WILL NOT BE PERMITTED. WHERE IT IS CONSIDERED APPROPRIATE IN CASES CgMs Limited © 6 SG/17097 Archaeological