Conservation Area Audit Peabody Estates
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CONSERVATION AREA AUDIT 55 PEABODY ESTATES: SOUTH WESTMINSTER CONSULTATION DRAFT MARCH 2008 Date: 01.04.08 Status: Draft SPD for Public Consultation Document ID No: 3041 Representations to: Conservation Area Audit, Department of Planning and City Development, Westminster City Council, 64 Victoria Street, London SW1E 6QP E-mail: [email protected] Direct Tel: 020 7641 2850/8705/8019 All comments should be submitted by X.XX.XXXX Department of Planning and City Development Development Planning Services City Hall, 64 Victoria Street, London SW1E 6QP www.westminster.gov.uk WESTMINSTER CITY COUNCIL DEPARTMENT OF PLANINNG AND CITY DEVELOPMENT PREFACE The second stage involved the production of Conservation Area Directories for Since the designation of the first each Conservation Area. A Directory has conservation areas in 1967 the City now been adopted for 51 of the City’s Council has undertaken a comprehensive conservation areas and includes copies of programme of conservation area designation reports, a detailed evaluation designation, extensions and policy of the historical development of the area development. There are now 54 and analysis of listed buildings and key conservation areas in Westminster, townscape features. covering 76% of the City. These conservation areas are the subject The City is now working on a programme of detailed policies in the Unitary to prepare Conservation Area Audits Development Plan and in Supplementary for each of its conservation areas. This Planning Guidance and Documents. In will form the third and final stage of addition to the basic activity of designation the appraisal process. As each audit is and the formulation of general policy, adopted as a Supplementary Planning the City Council is required to undertake Document, it will incorporate the Directory conservation area appraisals and to devise for that conservation area. local policies in order to protect the unique character of each area. Councillor Robert Davis DL Although this process was first undertaken with the various designation reports, more Chief Whip and recent national guidance (as found in Cabinet Member for Planning Planning Policy Guidance Note 15 and the English Heritage guidance documents) requires detailed appraisals of each conservation area in the form of formally approved and published documents. This enhanced process involves the review of original designation procedures and boundaries; analysis of historical development; identification of all listed buildings and those unlisted buildings making a positive contribution to an area; and the identification and description of key townscape features, including street patterns, trees, open spaces and building types. Given the number and complexity of Westminster’s conservation areas the appraisal process has been broken down into three stages, the first of which is complete. This first stage involved the publication of General Information Leaflets or mini-guides for each conservation area covering in brief a series of key categories including Designation, Historical Background, Listed Buildings and Key Features. CONSERVATION AREA AUDIT | PEABODY ESTATES: SOUTH WESTMINSTER P WESTMINSTER CITY COUNCIL DEPARTMENT OF PLANINNG AND CITY DEVELOPMENT CONTENTS 1 INTRODUCTION 2 LOCATION AND SETTING 3 HISTORY 4 CHARACTER OF THE CONSERVATION AREA GENERAL STREETS AND SPACES ARCHITECTURE Overview Roof Profiles Unlisted Buildings of Merit Landmark Buildings VIEWS 5 TOWNSCAPE DETAIL Railings, Boundary Walls and Enclosure Street Furniture Public Art Hard Landscaping Trees and Soft Landscaping 6 LAND USES 7 NEGATIVE FEATURES & ENHANCEMENT 8 MANAGEMENT PROPOSALS 9 GLOSSARY OF TERMS 10 DIRECTORY OF BACKGROUND PAPERS & INFORMATION SPD Background Documents Designation and Extension Reports List of listed buildings Other Designations Publications and Further Reading Contacts CONSERVATION AREA AUDIT | PEABODY ESTATES: SOUTH WESTMINSTER P5 Table of Figures and Illustrations Figure Page 1 Map showing the shaded estates and labelled blocks 9 2 Map showing conservation area boundary 9 3 Stripe’s Map of 1755 10 4 Painting of mid-18th century slums on St Ann’s Street 11 5 1870 Ordnance Survey Map of area showing the Rochester Buildings 11 6 1910 Ordnance Survey Map of area 12 7 Map: Building Uses 14 8 Map: Hierarchy of Streets and Spaces 15 9 Blocks C&D, Old Pye Street Estate 16 10 Infilled doorways to original Block D, Old Pye Street Estate 16 11 Central detailed window on Old Pye Street 16 12 William Gibbs Court and The Speaker public house, Great Peter Street 17 13 The Speaker public house, Great Peter Street 17 14 Old Pye Street facade of Abbey Orchard Estate 17 15 Internal courtyard/ playground, Abbey Orchard Esate 18 16 Block L entrance, Abbey Orchard Estate 18 17 Block N, Abbey Orchard Estate 18 18 Block Q, Abbey Orchard Estate 19 19 Access balcony on St Ann’s Lane House, Abbey Orchard Estate 19 20 Horseferry Road Estate northern facade 19 21 Original bathhouse, Horseferry Road Estate 19 22 Open stairwell entrance, Horseferry Road Estate 20 23 Block B, Horseferry Road Estate 20 24 No 79 Great Peter Street 20 25 Freize moulding under parapet line, No 79 Great Peter Street 20 26 No 2 Chadwick Street 21 27 No 77 Great Peter Street 21 28 Dutch-style gables on original Rochester Buildings, Old Pye Street Estate 21 29 Horseferry Road Estate gable design 21 30 Roof profile, Abbey Orchard Estate 21 31 Map: Unlisted Buildings of Merit 23 32 Map: Local Views 25 33 Entrance gates to Old Pye Street Estate 26 34 Boundary railings, Abbey Orchard Estate 26 35 Original pot retainer, Old Pye Street 27 36 Modern benches in Abbey Orchard’s central courtyard 27 37 Lanterns on The Speaker public house 27 38 Modern lamp standard in Abbey Orchard’s central courtyard 27 39 Grey Wornum lampstandard 27 40 Old Pye Street Estate signage 28 WESTMINSTER CITY COUNCIL DEPARTMENT OF PLANINNG AND CITY DEVELOPMENT 41 Horseferry Road Estate signage 28 42 Signage above doors to Horseferry Estate Block B 28 43 Public Art: Stone wall in Abbey Orchard central courtyard 28 44 Public Art: giant stone pear 28 45 Public Art: giant stone apple 28 46 Public Art: giant stone half pear 28 47 Hard landscaping and playground area, Abbey Orchard Estate 29 48 Metal retainer to plant bed, Abbey Orchard Estate 29 49 Concrete planter with metal retainers, Abbey Orchard Estate 29 50 Map: Land Uses 30 51 Enclosed stairwell, Old Pye Street Estate 31 52 Central courtyard, Old Pye Street Estate 31 53 Satellite dish sited on Horseferry Road Estate facade, Chadwick Street 32 54 CCTV sited, Great Peter Street 32 55 No 2 Chadwick Street 32 CONSERVATION AREA AUDIT | PEABODY ESTATES: SOUTH WESTMINSTER P7 1 INTRODUCTION AND back of this document. POLICY CONTEXT 1.5 The Conservation Area Audit for Peabody Estates: South Westminster was 1.1 Conservation Areas are ‘areas of adopted as a Supplementary Planning special architectural or historic interest, Document by the Cabinet Member for the character and appearance of which Planning on X.X.XXXX. The Peabody is it desirable to preserve or enhance.’ Estates: South Westminster Conservation They are areas which are immediately Area was designated on 04.0.2008. The recognisable for their distinctive designation reports can be found in the townscape. Directory at the back of this document. 1.2 The City Council has a statutory duty to review the character and boundaries of its conservation areas. This Audit is the The Unitary Development Plan (UDP) third, and final stage of a review process. was adopted in January 2007 and is the The overall appraisal strategy is based statutory document setting out planning upon the English Heritage publications: policies for developing land, improving Guidance on Conservation Area Appraisals transport and protecting the environment and Guidance on Conservation Area in Westminster. Relevant policies from Management. the UDP are referred to throughout the audit. 1. The Audit describes both the historical development, and character and appearance of the conservation area. It is designed to identify and explain important local features such as unlisted buildings of merit, unbroken rooflines and local views. In addition the audit also seeks to apply relevant Unitary Development Plan policies to the local context in order to preserve and/or enhance the character and appearance of the area. 1.4 This Supplementary Planning Document has been prepared in accordance with the advice contained in PPS12 and the Town and Country Planning (local development) (England) Regulations 2004. Consultation has been carried out in accordance with Westminster’s Statement of Community Involvement. A sustainability appraisal and statement setting out how the public have been involved in preparation of the document is set out in the directory at the WESTMINSTER CITY COUNCIL DEPARTMENT OF PLANINNG AND CITY DEVELOPMENT 2 LOCATION AND SETTING 2.1 The Peabody Estates: South Westminster Conservation Area consists of three Peabody Trust estates: • Old Pye Street Estate • Abbey Orchard Street Estate • Horseferry Road Estate 2.2 The conservation area sits south of the busy Victoria Street and is bounded by the Broadway and Christchurch Gardens Conservation Area on the western side and Westminster Abbey and Parliament Square Conservation Area to the east. Figure 1: Map with shaded estates and labelled blocks Figure 2: Map showing conservation area boundary. CONSERVATION AREA AUDIT | PEABODY ESTATES: SOUTH WESTMINSTER P9 3 HISTORY area, which could have been this Toot Hill. Thus, by Medieval times, the area of open .1 In prehistoric times much of the land ground extending west from Milbank and south of present day St James’s Park, south of Westminster Abbey, including including that of the area of the Peabody the Peabody Estates Conservation Area, Estates Conservation Area, would have became commonly known as Tothill Fields. been waterlogged marsh, formed by the The fields were used for pasturing cattle, delta of the Thames tributary, the river growing vegetables, horse racing, archery Tyburn or Tybourne. Rising from the practice, military parades, bear and bull marshes was a large gravel island, later bating.