Heslington Village Design Statement HESLINGTON VILLAGE DESIGN STATEMENT INDEX 1 Introduction . 1 7 Elvington Airfield . 16 2 History . 4 8 Social Aspects of Heslington Today - 3 The Countryside and the Village. 5 Implications for Development . 16 3.1 The Village Setting . 5 9 Commercial. 18 3.2 Open Spaces in and around the Village . 6 10 Roads, Paths and Traffic . 19 3.3 Farming . 9 11 Visual Intrusion and Noise . 21 3.4 The Conservation Area . 10 11.1 Signs and Street Furniture . 21 4 The Built Environment . 13 11.2 Lighting and Security. 22 5 Crime Prevention . 15 11.3 Noise and Disruption . 22 6 Campus 3 Development . 15 Acknowledgements Key to cover photographs (left to right):- This Village Design Statement has been produced with the help Front cover: Heslington Hall; Main Street South; the Paddock; and support of so many that they cannot all be named St Paul’s Church; More House. individually, though the following are recorded who have Back inside cover: details of vernacular building materials in particularly contributed to its text and illustration; Nick Allen, Heslington. Mike Fernie, Angela Fisher, Richard Frost, Peter Hall, Sally Hawkswell, John Hutchinson (illustrations), John Jones, Back outer cover: window, Village Meeting Room; bell-tower, Jon Lovett, Bill McClean, Jeffrey Stern, David Strickland, Lord Deramore's School; window detail, St Paul’s Church, Tony Tolhurst and Ifan Williams. We would also like to thank doorway, number 10 Main Street [South]; headstone of Diane Cragg and Katherine Atkinson of CYC for their help and John West-Taylor (St Paul’s Church); door, Almshouses, advice in the preparation of this document. Thanks also to Main Street [South]; date stone, Wesleyan Chapel (now the Heslington Village Trust and the Ward Committee for funding. Village Meeting Room); chimney, Heslington Hall. HESLINGTON VILLAGE DESIGN STATEMENT questionnaire circulated to the entire Heslington Village Design Statement Village. 1 Introduction This VDS therefore aims to describe the (b) A preliminary meeting involving over special character of the Village of 100 people was held in the School. The production of a Village Design Heslington and to shape future development through its adoption as the basis for Statement (VDS) is a Countryside Agency (c) A further meeting held in the Village Supplementary Planning Guidance (SPG) initiative dating from 1996 and supported Meeting Room, to which those who had to the Draft Local Plan. This VDS should and endorsed by the then Secretary of State registered interest in the VDS were invited be considered in the context of the for the Environment. and a steering committee formed which Council’s emerging Local Plan and the oversaw the whole process. It comprised Development Briefs for the existing The objectives of a Village Design approximately 30 people from all sections Campus and Campus 3. It should be noted Statement are to:- of the community, including the School that the VDS fully represents the views of Headmistress, the local Vicar, members of 1. Describe the distinctive character of local villagers and includes some the University living in the Village and the village and the surrounding aspirations that are outside current planning members of both the Parish Council and countryside regulations. Heslington Village Trust. 2. Show how character can be identified With the exception of section 6, this (d) A daylong workshop open to all at three levels:- document does not apply to the existing villagers was held at the School with an campus outside the conservation area or the • The landscape setting of the village exhibition of maps, historical documents 65 ha proposed Campus 3 site. • The shape of the settlement and photographs. This was overseen by an • The nature of the buildings independent professional facilitator. themselves This document has been accepted as Supplementary Planning Guidance to the (e) The output from the workshop was 3. Work in partnership with the local City of York Council's emerging draft Local summarised and edited into a series of planning authority in the context of Plan on 22nd April 2004. drafts by a team of about 20 people, existing local planning policy to supervised by the steering group. influence future policies The sequence of events for the formulation of this VDS was:- (f) Seven weeks were allowed for 4. Draw up design principles based on comments by the villagers on the final the distinctive local character (a) An invitation along with a preliminary draft. PAGE 1 HESLINGTON VILLAGE DESIGN STATEMENT The Paddock from Boss Lane (g) A further public meeting open to all at Halifax College, which was considered the heart of the historic city of York. As villagers was held for final comment. part of the University. agreed with the University of York and the City of York Council, the area of coverage h) There was a concluding meeting of the Although the group acted independently, of this VDS is the Parish of Heslington, full steering committee to endorse the consultation also took place with the excluding; wording of the final text. Parish Council. The group worked closely with City of York Council’s Planning 1. The existing University where it is (i) Drafts have been given to CYC and the Department to ensure that the finished VDS outside the conservation area and... Countryside Agency for review. would be a valid tool for planning guidance when determining future planning 2. The proposed site of the future Campus 3 Throughout the process, villagers were kept applications for development affecting should this proceed (although section 6 of informed of VDS events by means of door- Heslington. the VDS, as stated previously, applies to to-door leafleting. All households were this area). leafleted on at least four occasions. Other This VDS points out the features valued local publicity was achieved through by residents. It is intended that its The future plans of the University are posters in local shops, the school and the recommendations should guide statutory therefore outside the terms of reference of Church and through the parish magazine bodies, public authorities, planners, the VDS, although some comment is made which was delivered to every household. developers, builders, architects, designers, within this document where the University Any students living in the community were engineers, community groups, householders has a direct impact on the Village. The included in the leafleting, with the and businesses to respect the character of University also owns some properties exception of those in the residential block this uniquely preserved community close to within the Village itself. PAGE 2 HESLINGTON VILLAGE DESIGN STATEMENT Siward’s How The VDS covers the whole of the Parish except the University as described in the introduction. The boundary Proposed site for Campus 3 has been chosen to follow the northern line of the existing conservation area (shown more clearly on the next Low Lane map), starting at Field Lane in the east and continuing until it meets Heslington Lane. It continues west along Heslington Lane and then along the Parish Boundary Outgang south. Langwith (Common) Lane Tilmire Elvington Airfield Public Right of Way Crown Copyright reproduced by permission of Ordnance Survey on behalf of the Controller of Her Majesty’s Stationery Office. Licence number LA100020818 Heslington Parish and extent of the VDS showing key areas and rights of way P AGE 3 HESLINGTON VILLAGE DESIGN STATEMENT 2History the hill to the north-west of Heslington (a By the late 18thC the now familiar fields, scheduled monument), where a watertower farms and hedgerows of Heslington were Heslington, which seems to have derived its and telecommunications station now stand, established - 11 of perhaps 25 farms survive name from “a place by the hazels”, is disguised in a surreal concrete castle today. Also in the eighteenth century further thought to have originated as an Anglian surrounded by mature trees. historically important buildings were added settlement that predates the Domesday to Heslington. These include Little Hall survey of 1086. The first named person to In medieval times Heslington’s historic (1734), Manor House, the hospital, (now be associated with Heslington was Siward village layout became established, with known as the Almshouses), Village Farm, (c.1020-1055), the huge half-legendary long and narrow plots of land extending to the School (1795) and the Vicarage (now Danish Earl of Northumbria who is the back lanes. Where they survive they known as More House). The most notable immortalised in the name Siward’s How - have particular value for that reason. It is resident of the latter was the wit Sydney important that they are Smith who arrived in 1809. protected from subdivision as far as possible. The Village The Wesleyan Chapel (now the Village became further settled in the Meeting Room) was built in 1844 and the form that we still recognise new school in 1856, with handsome new when Heslington Hall was Stables for Heslington Hall at about the completed for Sir Thomas same time. By 1858 the medieval Church Eynns in 1568. Henrietta of St Paul’s was replaced on the same site (aged 26), the daughter of by one in the Victorian gothic style by James Yarburgh, who owned Atkinson at the cost of £3,000, although the Heslington Hall from 1708, bells of 1388 and some of the wall plaques made a notable match when survive. There are 21 buildings listed as in 1719 she married Sir John having outstanding architectural quality or Vanburgh (aged 54), historic interest in Heslington. They are playwright and architect of particularly valued by the community. Castle Howard, who was These are listed in Appendix 1. reported as confessing “it was so bloody cold up here In 1881 the population of Heslington was that he had a mind to marry 477 and by 1901 it had risen to 506.