Chris Butler MIFA Archaeological Services
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Chris Butler MIFA Archaeological Services A Desk-based Assessment and Written Scheme of Investigation For a Watching Brief at Tideway School, Southdown Road, Newhaven, East Sussex by Chris Butler June 2010 Chris Butler Tideway School, Archaeological Services Newhaven Summary An archaeological Desk-based Assessment has been carried out at Tideway School, Newhaven, East Sussex in advance of the construction of a new ICT classroom. The survey has established that there is evidence for activity in the immediate area of the site from the Mesolithic period through to the Roman period, and given the geology and nearby sites and finds, the possibility of the development affecting archaeological remains from these periods is high. This is especially so given the discoveries made during the construction of the adjacent gym in 1973, which suggests that there will be Mesolithic and Bronze Age activity at the site. It is therefore recommended that an archaeological watching brief should be carried out during any intrusive groundworks during the development. Chris Butler MIFA Archaeological Services Prehistoric Flintwork Specialist Rosedale Berwick, Polegate East Sussex BN26 6TB Tel & fax: 01323 871021 e mail: [email protected] 1 Chris Butler Tideway School, Archaeological Services Newhaven Contents 1.0 Introduction 3 2.0 Objectives & Scope of Report 4 3.0 Methodology 4 4.0 Archaeological & Historical Background 6 5.0 Impact of Development 14 6.0 Conclusions 15 7.0 Method Statement 16 8.0 Recording Systems and Scales, and Finds Collection Policy 17 9.0 Post-excavation Analysis and Report 18 10.0 Health & Safety 19 11.0 Monitoring & Standards 19 12.0 Acknowledgements 19 Figures: Fig. 1 Site Location map Fig. 2 Archaeological Notification Area Fig. 3 Geology map Fig. 4 Map showing Monuments on the HER Fig. 5 Map showing Events on HER Fig. 6 Newhaven Tithe Map Fig. 7 1st Edition OS Map Fig. 8 2nd Edition OS Map Fig. 9 3rd Edition OS Map Fig. 10 4th Edition OS Map Fig. 11 1947 Aerial photograph Fig. 12 1999 Aerial photograph Fig. 13 Proposed layout of new ICT classroom Figs. 14/15 Photographs from site visit Appendices: Appendix 1 Archaeological Sites Recorded on HER Appendix 2 Archaeological Events from the HER 2 Chris Butler Tideway School, Archaeological Services Newhaven 1.0 Introduction 1.1 Chris Butler Archaeological Services has been commissioned by Hamson Partnership Ltd for Tideway School, Newhaven (The Client) to carry out an Archaeological Desk-based Assessment at Tideway School, in order to establish the likely presence and importance of any archaeological remains that may be affected by the proposed development of a new ICT classroom and associated landscaping at the school (LW/10/75). 1.2 The location of the new classroom at Tideway School is centred on TQ 43870 00576 (Fig. 1). Tideway School is situated on the south-west side of Newhaven town, and is located at around 55m OD on a south-east facing slope which falls into a dry valley to the south-east of the site before rising again onto Castle Hill1. Harbour Heights are situated to the south of the site, and the River Ouse is located approximately 1km to the east of the site. The school is surrounded by housing development to the west and north. 1.3 The site of the proposed ICT classroom is situated on the north-west side of the current school buildings, adjoining the Gym and Hall, and adjacent to the school car park (Fig. 1). The site is located is currently partly grassed, and partly a temporary building, which has already been demolished apart from the concrete raft foundation. 1.4 The original Tideway School was built in the 1960’s, but was devastated by a fire in 2005, and having been rebuilt (LW/2563), was reopened in February 2009. The site is within an Archaeological Notification Area (ANA) (Fig. 2). 1.5 The geology of the site, according to the British Geological Survey (sheet 319/334), is Woolwich and Reading Beds with Tarrant Chalk and then Newhaven Chalk to the south and east of the site (Fig. 3). The site is situated at the boundary between the Woolwich and Reading Beds and the Tarrant Chalk. 1.6 This report initially covers the objectives and scope of the survey, then discusses the methodology used in the Desk-based Assessment, and then reviews the archaeological heritage of the area, with a conclusion assessing the potential impact of the development. A Written Scheme of Investigation for an archaeological watching brief is incorporated into this document. 1.7 A full listing of all the known archaeological sites is contained in Appendix 1 to this report, with archaeological events in Appendix 2. 1 Johnson, C. 2000 Archaeological & Historic Landscape Survey: Castle Hill, Newhaven, East Sussex, Archaeology South-East Report 1247. 3 Chris Butler Tideway School, Archaeological Services Newhaven 2.0 Objectives & Scope of Report 2.1 The objective of this report is to gain information about the known or potential archaeological resource of the site and its immediate area. This will include information relating to the presence or absence of any archaeology, its character and extent, date, integrity, state of preservation, and the relative quality of the potential archaeological resource. 2.2 This will allow an assessment of the merit of the archaeology in context to be made, leading to the formulation of a strategy for the recording, preservation and management of the resource or, where necessary, the formulation of a strategy for further investigation where the character and value of the resource is not sufficiently defined to permit a mitigation strategy or other response to be defined. 2.3 The report will consider the archaeological resource within a radius of 2km around the site, whilst also taking into account sites further afield where these may be considered to have an impact or relevance to the site in its landscape setting. 2.4 It should be noted that this report can only take into account the existing known archaeology, and by its nature cannot provide a complete record of the archaeological resource of the site. Its intention is to provide an overview of the known archaeology in the area of the site, from which judgements can be made about the potential archaeological resource of the site itself. 3.0 Methodology 3.1 This Desk-based Assessment has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of Planning Policy Statement 5 (PPS5), the Standard and Guidance for Archaeological Desk-based Assessment (Institute for Archaeologists 2001), and the Standards for Archaeological Fieldwork, Recording and Post Excavation Work in East Sussex (ESCC 2008). 3.2 The research for this Desk-based Assessment has included an analysis of the following resources: • ESCC Historic Environment Record (HER) • Historic mapping • Portable Antiquities Scheme database • East Sussex Record Office (ESRO) • NewhavenMuseum • British Geological Survey • Aerial Photograph search • Personal & Public library resources 4 Chris Butler Tideway School, Archaeological Services Newhaven 3.3 The following maps were used: • Yeakell and Gardner's Sussex 1778-1783 • Timeline Historical Map 198 • 1838 Newhaven Tithe map (ESRO – TD/E113) • 1st Edition OS Map (1875) • 2nd Edition OS Map (1899) • 3rd Edition OS Map (1911) • 4th Edition OS Map (1938) • Later OS maps Information gained from the map regression exercise is contained in the Post Medieval section below. 3.4 The Sites and Listed Buildings recorded on the HER are listed in Appendix 1 to this report and mentioned in the text where relevant. The HER records also contain a number of archaeological events, which are listed in Appendix 2. The Monuments are shown on Fig. 4 and Events are shown on Fig. 5. Historical and other sources are given as footnotes as appropriate. 3.5 A site visit was undertaken on the 21st May 2010. This established that the site is situated on the north-west side of the school adjacent to the gym and hall which are on the south and east sides, whilst the school car park is on the north side, and a housing estate is adjacent to the school on the west side. A small fenced compound for recycling is situated on the north-west side of the site. 3.6 The site is located on an east facing slope, which comprises mostly mown grass. In the south-east corner of the site there is a rectangular concrete raft foundation for a now demolished wooden hut. Adjacent to this is a manhole cover, suggesting below ground service drains, and a tarmac path runs north to south along the east side of the site. The adjacent buildings have been terraced into the slope. 3.7 Apart from the concrete raft and drain, the remainder of the site looks to be the original slope, and has little evidence for any prior impact; however I was advised that a replica First World War trench had been dug on the north side of the site. An undiagnostic prehistoric flint flake and a single piece of fire-fractured flint were recovered from bare patches of earth on the ground surface of the grassed slope adjacent to the site during the site visit. 5 Chris Butler Tideway School, Archaeological Services Newhaven 4.0 Archaeological & Historical Background 4.0.1 This section considers each archaeological period in turn, reviewing the known archaeological resource of the area, defining its location and extent, character, date, integrity, state of preservation, and quality. 4.0.2 There has been a reasonable amount of archaeological work carried out in the vicinity of Tideway School (Appendix 2), with an evaluation excavation on the Harbour Heights development to the west of the site producing Mesolithic and Neolithic flintwork, Bronze Age pottery and Roman pottery and a pit (EES14083), whilst the 1973 construction of the gym at Tideway School produced Mesolithic flintwork and a Bronze Age cremation.