The Bucks Gardener Issue 33 The Newsletter of the Buckinghamshire Gardens Trust Winter – Spring 2013 SprinG TalkS 2013 reCorDinG of BuCkinGhamshire’S GarDenS, larGe anD small Gardens for modernist houses in Buckinghamshire: problems & solutions Margaret Higgins katherine Myers Anyone who attended the Trust’s splendid Christmas 2.30pm, Saturday 16 February lunch at the Russell Arms would have heard the speech by Katherine Myers is a Lecturer in Garden History. Modernist Brian Dix, the garden archeologist, urging the recording architecture arrived in Buckinghamshire in the nineteen- of historic gardens in Bucks. It is something the Trust is twenties, largely introduced by designers from abroad, but not currently doing, although it has in the past; indeed it is without a corresponding and equally revolutionary garden part of our mission statement, ‘to record and conserve the philosophy attached. The buildings appeared at odds with gardens and parks of the historic county’. the prevailing Arts and Crafts gardening mode, so between How are we to get this long-term project off the ground the Wars and beyond some architects were searching, with and resume recording? Well, we need volunteers!! Anyone varying success, for an answer to this mismatch. who is interested in historic gardens could do it. Some of the Talk at the County Museum, Aylesbury. benefits include: • learning new skills Evelyn Dunbar (1906-60), painter, mural artist & illustrator • meeting people with similar interests Dr Gill Clarke • enjoying finding information on Buckinghamshire’s 2.30pm, Saturday 16 March parks and gardens Dr Gill Clarke is the author of Evelyn Dunbar: War & • sharing research by making it available to the wider public, Country, & recently published a biography of Randolph planning officers and future generations of researchers Schwabe (1885–1948) Head of the Slade School of Art. • maintaining/updating an historic archive, for future use Evelyn Dunbar was employed during WWII as an Official We have two (recently joined) members of the BGT who British War Artist, documenting women’s activities, in have relevant knowledge and are willing to co-ordinate particular the land girls. She collaborated with Charles the Recorders group: Margaret higgins, who has been a Mahoney to write & illustrate Gardeners’ Choice (1937) & in member of the Cornwall Gardens Trust and a recorder 1938 designed and illustrated Gardener’s Diary for Country there, and Claire de Carle who is doing an MA in Garden Life. Dunbar later painted commemorative panels for the History at the University of Buckingham. library at Bletchley Park whilst it was used as a training In addition we have the co-operation of Julia Wise who college for teachers. is Historic Environment Record Officer at Bucks County Talk at the County Museum, Aylesbury. Council, and is willing to give training. In the first instance, and if you are interested, please would ‘Very pleasantlie appointed’, (Robert Langham’s letter, 1575): you email either Claire at: [email protected] or me, Discovering Elizabethan gardens Margaret, at: [email protected] Brian Dix We look forward to hearing from you! 2.30pm, Saturday 20 April STOP PRESS — ALL WELCoMe Brian Dix, is a freelance archaeologist specialising in We will be having a meeting at 6pm on Wednesdy 27 february historic parks & gardens, and will be leading our visit to at the hartwell Spa, in the eric Throssell Meeting room. Kenilworth Castle later in the year. The recent full-size restoration of the garden which Robert Dudley created for Queen Elizabeth I’s visit to Kenilworth in 1575 is based upon Contents a combination of literary and archaeological evidence … from the Chair … 2 and a healthy dose of conjecture. It may nevertheless evoke historic parks and Gardens: planning information requirements … 2 the spirit of the original and with more complete remains Brenda Colvin at Stowe … 3 surviving elsewhere provides us with an introduction to out of the rough! a Tale of Two Golf Courses (at Stowe) … 4 experiencing the Renaissance garden. James Brown, Gardener (c.1786–1878) … 6 Langham’s letter is too long to publish here, to read it in Bucks Gardens Trust’s Visits, 2012 … 8 full, you will find a pdf link on our website. St katherine’s parmoor: the lady ryder Memorial Gardens … 11 Talk at the County Museum, Aylesbury. Book notes Egypt in England Chris Elliott … 11 Our Talks are held at the Buckinghamshire County Museum, Georgian Garden Buildings Church Street, Aylesbury, HP20 2QP, commencing at 2.30pm and Sarah Rutherford with Jonathan Lovie … 12 include tea and cakes. Contacts … 12 Cost, members of Gardens Trusts: £10, guests: £12. froM The Chair Great moves are ahead in the world of historic gardens, railways, wind turbines or just good old fashioned building especially as the Gardens History Society and the developments. We should not lose sight of the fact that it Association of Gardens Trusts work ever closer together should also provide pleasure and interest to those involved to protect and cherish our heritage of historic parks in the group as its primary function. and gardens from threats to their survival in the new On a personal note it’s good to be back in the editorial century. This is especially true as the great surge of seat of this publication, with a more regular publication restoration over the last few years funded in large part schedule, still under discussion. by the Heritage Lottery Fund and matched funding by We will return shortly with details of our Summer councils, other owners and charities, comes up against Visits programme, which will try to pick up on the theme the reality of tightening purse strings. We are very excited taken up at national level by the aforementioned GHS then to promote the new BGT Recording Group, who and AGT that is ‘contemporary landscape design’. I will be providing us with ever more breadth and depth of take it that includes Brenda Colvin’s work at Stowe, and knowledge of the wealth of gardens old and new in the perhaps golf courses, and I suppose there are grounds county. This may also furnish us with material both for to hope something good may even come out of the HS2 publication in this organ, and as a means to an end in developments at Hartwell and other sites in our green and supporting our hard-pressed Planning Group as they see pleasant Aylesbury Vale… off threats to our parks and gardens, whether from new historiC parkS anD GarDenS: planninG inforMaTion requireMents Victoria Thompson One of the many things which local planning authorities definition, i.e. prompting an evaluation of the artistic, must take into account in their work is national planning historic, etc. interest of a park or garden, and the impact of policy. This is currently set out in the National Planning a proposal on that. The more a local assessment of a park Policy Framework (NPPF), published in 2012. The NPPF or garden addresses these interests, the more readily that covers both policy and process of relevance to historic parks assessment can be used by the local planning authority in its and gardens. work, and the more receptive it is likely to be. policy process Like its predecessor (‘PPS5’), the NPPF makes a distinction The NPPF states that ‘In determining applications, local between two types of ‘heritage asset’: those which are planning authorities should require an applicant to describe ‘designated’ (such as Registered parks and gardens), and the significance of any heritage assets affected’. This is those which are not (‘non-designated’ heritage assets); usually done by requiring the submission of a statement of these last are generally identified by the local planning significance. The work done should be ‘proportionate’ with authority, e.g. in local lists, but could also be identified regard to the importance of the asset, and ‘no more than is by others, e.g. the Bucks Gardens Trust. Both types are sufficient to understand the potential impact of the proposal defined/justified by ‘having a degree of significance meriting on [its] significance’. Research suggests that statements consideration in planning decisions, because of [their] heritage of significance are not always required before a planning interest’. application is ‘validated’ (i.e. starts to be considered by Both types of heritage asset receive protection under the the local planning authority), and that even where they are policy in the NPPF, but this varies in strength depending on required, their quality and fitness for purpose may not be whether a park or garden is a ‘designated heritage asset’ or assessed. a ‘non-designated heritage asset’. In both cases, though, The local planning authority itself is also required to local planning authorities are required to take significance ‘identify and assess the particular significance of any into account ‘when considering the impact of a proposal’. heritage asset that may be affected by a proposal’; research So the identification and definition of the significance suggests that proactive activity in this regard is limited in of a park or garden is essential if the protection provided practice, not least because of resource constraints within by planning policy is sought: a park or garden must have Councils generally, and lack of parks and gardens expertise known ‘significance’ if it is to be formally recognised within more specifically. the planning system in the first place, and the nature and Thus a pre-prepared assessment of a park or garden’s degree of that significance will then influence how the policy significance would be of direct benefit to a local planning is applied, and the park or garden protected. authority. Whilst the weight to be accorded to various Significance itself is defined in the NPPF as: ‘ factors will be for the local planning authority to decide, The value of a heritage asset to this and future generations as part of its determination of the planning application in because of its heritage interest.