BOROUGH COUNCIL OF WELLINGBOROUGH AGENDA ITEM 4 Development Committee 17 February 2020 Report of the Principal Planning Manager Local listing of the Roundhouse and proposed Article 4 Direction 1 Purpose of report For the committee to consider and approve the designation of the Roundhouse (or number 2 engine shed) as a locally listed building and for the committee to also approve an application for the addition of an Article 4(1) direction to the building in order to remove permitted development rights and prevent unauthorised demolition. 2 Executive summary 2.1 The Roundhouse is a railway locomotive engine shed built in 1872 by the Midland Railway. There is some concern locally that the building could be demolished and should be protected. It was not considered by English Heritage to be worthy of national listing but it is considered by the council to be worthy of local listing. 2.2 Local listing does not protect the building from demolition but is a material consideration in a planning application. 2.3 An article 4(1) direction would be required to be in place to remove the permitted development rights of the owner. In this case it would require the owner to seek planning permission for the partial or total demolition of the building. 3 Appendices Appendix 1 – Site location plan Appendix 2 – Photos of site Appendix 3 – Historic mapping Appendix 4 – Historic England report for listing Appendix 5 – Local list criteria 4 Proposed action: 4.1 The committee is invited to APPROVE that the Roundhouse is locally listed and to APPROVE that an article 4 (1) direction can be made. 1 5 Background 5.1 The building is located just off the new Roundhouse Way connecting the railway station to Finedon Road. 5.2 The Roundhouse is a locomotive engine shed built in 1872 for the Midland railway by architect John Holloway Saunders. An identical roundhouse was built nearby in 1868 but was demolished in 1960 and replaced with a replacement storage shed that has also now been demolished. 5.3 The building is square in form and covered by a roof in three parts that provides a distinctive triple gable at the South and North elevations. 5.4 The building was entered by locomotives from the North and then manoeuvred on a turntable to one of 24 roads within the building. The locomotives were then repaired and maintained as necessary. The turntable gives the name of ‘roundhouse’ to the building. 5.5 After 1966 the building was not used by the railways and became a storage and distribution warehouse, most notably for the Totectors company. A large sign still remains on the Northern elevation. 5.6 Internally the turntable has been removed and or filled in and the smoke ducts have been removed. 5.7 The windows have been bricked up from the outside but internally the steel frame windows remain. 5.8 English Heritage (now Historic England) in 2011 was requested to list the building as a building of national importance. In the report attached Appendix 4 the architectural and historical significance of the building is discussed. The conclusion was that the building did not meet the criteria for national listing. 5.9 In the Pevsner book ‘Buildings of Northamptonshire’ 2011 the building is described as a ‘rare Locomotive Roundhouse of 1872’. 5.10 Local concern has been raised regarding the possible demolition of the roundhouse. The possibility of demolition been raised on social media platforms and in the local newspaper. The planning department and conservation officer have been contacted by worried local interest groups. 6 Discussion 6.1 The current status of the building is that it is within the area known as Stanton Cross and is owned by the developer Bovis Homes (now Vistry Homes). 6.2 The building is not listed or within a conservation area, and as such is vulnerable to being demolished by the owner who could do so without requiring planning permission. 2 6.3 The owner has not described any intention to demolish the building and is currently working with the council’s planning team to develop an end use for the building that would be sustainable. 6.4 A structural survey and an asbestos survey are being undertaken to inform this process. 6.5 In order to strengthen the position of the roundhouse in planning terms and to protect it from demolition, other than approved by a planning application, a two stage process would be required by the council. 6.6 The first stage would be to locally list the building in line with the local list of heritage assets SPD as adopted by the council in October 2013. The SPD sets out selection criteria for local listing based on age, design, history, archaeology and condition. These criteria have been considered and the roundhouse does meet the standards required as described in Appendix 5. The SPD envisaged validation by an Advisory Panel before being submitted to Development Committee for approval. However given that this proposal relates to a single property this stage is not considered necessary. Should the committee agree to list the asset a letter will be sent to the owner explaining the implications of the decision and the entry shall be recorded into the Northamptonshire Historic Environment Record (HER). 6.7 The second stage is to add a non immediate article 4( 1) direction for the removal of permitted development rights, in particular demolition of the building in part or as a whole. The process requires the serving of a notice on the owner, a site display and an advertisement. The secretary of state is also notified. The process is not immediate and allows representations from the owner to be considered. This process would take a minimum of seven weeks at which point the Article 4 (1) is confirmed. 6.8 An immediate article 4 (1) direction would not allow the owner to make representations and would be open to claims of compensation from the owner. It is not considered that the building is at immediate risk. 7 Legal powers 7.1 The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Amendment) (England) Order 2010 (Statutory Instrument 2010/654). 8 Financial and value for money implications No planning fee would be liable should a planning application follow the article 4 direction. 3 9 Risk analysis Nature of risk Consequences Likelihood of Control if realised occurrence measures The building is Reputational This is currently Discussion with demolished damage to the considered the owner and the council for not unlikely, but this implementation of seeking to could change an Article 4(1) protect the upon the result direction. building. of the structural survey. The building is The building is This is Continued demolished prior lost, and there is considered discussion with to an article 4(1) reputational unlikely as the the owner. being in place damage to the owner is council. responsible for a much wider site. Compensation Financial Unlikely due to A non immediate is sought by the compensation the type of article 4 direction owner would be Article 4 used. is recommended required. to allow representation from the owner. 10 Implications for resources 10.1 An amount of officer time is required to prepare the Article 4(1) direction. 11 Implications for stronger and safer communities None 12 Implications for equalities 12.1 An initial EqIA screening was completed which determined that a full EqIA would not be required. 13 Author and contact officer John Udall – Design and Conservation Officer 14 Consultees Liz Elliott, Managing Director Vicki Jessop, Assistant Director Victoria Phillipson, Principal Property and Projects Manager Martyn Swann, Principal Planning Manager Sue Bateman, Senior Planning Officer Louise Jelley, Senior Development Management Officer Emma Granger, District Law Eric Symons, Assistant Director 15 Background papers None 4 Engine Shed 2, The Roundhouse Scale: ± 1:2,500 Author: J Udall Date: 27/01/2020 © Crown Copyright and database right 2020. Ordnance Survey 100018694. Cities Revealed Aerial Photography copyright: GetMapping PLC 1999 Show new road layout 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Engine sheds 1 and 2 in 1882 Scale: ± 1:3,500 1 2 Author: J Udall Date: 27/01/2020 © Crown Copyright and database right 2020. Ordnance Survey 100018694. Cities Revealed Aerial Photography copyright: GetMapping PLC 1999 Shows both engine sheds and associated buildings with the track and sidings 13 14 E N G L I S H H E R I T A G E EAST OF ENGLAND REGION Mr Paul Boatman Our Ref: 164178 Bovis Homes Group Pie Bromwich Court Highway Point Direct Line: 01223 582725 Gorsey Lane Coleshill Email: donna.martin@english- Warwickshire heritage.org.uk B46 1JU 14 December 2011 Dear Mr Boatman, PLANNING (LISTED BUILDINGS AND CONSERVATION AREAS) ACT 1990 BUILDINGS OF SPECIAL ARCHITECTURAL OR HISTORIC INTEREST OLD WELLINGBOROUGH MOTIVE POWER DEPOT (15A) OR ROUNDHOUSE, MILL ROAD, WELLINGBOROUGH, WELLINGBOROUGH, NORTHAMPTONSHIRE I refer to the application to add the above building to the list of buildings of special architectural or historic interest, which we believe has not been notified. The Secretary of State has consulted us in our role as the Government's statutory adviser on the historic environment with responsibility for listing. We have considered all representations made, and completed the assessment of the above building. Having considered our recommendation the Secretary of State decided not to list the building on 2nd March 2011. I enclose a copy of our advice report, prepared for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), which gives the principal reasons for this decision. If you consider that this decision has been wrongly made you may contact the DCMS within 28 days of the date of this letter to request that the Secretary of State review the decision.