An effective local plan provides rules to protect our heritage, but Sheffield’s proposed plan has three gaping holes:
Conservation Areas: No mention of the long-promised Conservation Area for Castlegate, or any other new areas, leaving unlisted buildings vulnerable to demolition at two weeks’ notice.
Areas of Special Character: Protection will be removed from around forty of these areas, including Mayfield Valley, Devonshire Green, Mosborough and many more.
Local Heritage List: The plan barely mentions this hard-won list of the heritage that is most valued by local people. It should be at the heart of the plan, with a policy for special protection and further expansion. Other local authorities have this, so why not Sheffield?
Consultation closes on 20th February, see below for how you can have your say
Sheffield’s new Local Plan affects every historic building in the city. It is due to come into force in December 2024 and will govern all planning decisions for the next 15 years. Too much of our built heritage has been lost or damaged under the existing plan and we have to get it right this time. Your help is needed to make this happen. Public consultation ends in just over two weeks, so action is needed now.
The plan says that Sheffield will be “A well-designed city – with a strong local identity and a reputation for quality buildings and for valuing its heritage assets”. It’s a bold statement. HHB members may look at past performance and wonder how this ambition can possibly be delivered without major changes. The answer is that it will not, unless three gaping holes in the new plan are fixed. See below our concerns and how you can help.
Conservation Areas
Sheffield has 38 Conservation Areas in which special rules underpinned by the law are supposed to ensure that their historic character and appearance is preserved or enhanced. They range from Ecclesfield in the north to Greenhill in the south, Dore in the west to Hackenthorpe in the east. They cover much of the city centre and several of the leafier western suburbs. In 2017 the Council promised a 39th, in Castlegate, but then in 2019 cancelled a public consultation and have dragged their feet ever since. The excuse was given that work needed to be completed on the new plan – but the plan says nothing about any Conservation Area in Castlegate. Any unlisted building in the Castlegate area can be demolished without planning permission at two weeks’ notice. That nearly happened to the Old Coroner’s Court, and we still expect demolition to take place. It could happen to historic buildings on Haymarket, some dating back to Georgian times.
And it isn’t just Castlegate. The law says that the Council must constantly review its area to see whether more places deserve to become Conservation Areas, and if they find any they must designate them. The new plan says nothing about even looking. We don’t have to look very far, because we already have candidates amongst Sheffield’s Areas of Special Character.
Areas of Special Character
The plan should be protecting more of the city, but instead it removes some existing protections. Since 1998, the policy on Areas of Special Character has ensured the historic character of around forty areas has to be considered in any decision. Under the new plan, this will simply disappear, leaving all these historic places vulnerable. The beautiful Mayfield Valley is one. The Loxley Valley, with its wonderful woods and riverside and rich industrial heritage of mining and waterpower is another. They include rural villages – Dungworth and Ringinglow, for example – and urban enclaves such as Devonshire Green and Portobello. The Botanical Gardens and Norfolk and Weston Parks are Areas of Special Character. Most important of all, they exist in parts of the city where the heritage has been ignored for too long, with no Conservation Areas and few Listed Buildings: Attercliffe, Beighton, Mosborough, Woodhouse and more.
The Mayfield Valley Area of Special Character was a factor in saving Bennett Cottage. The Devonshire Street shops are in the Devonshire Green ASC. HHB successfully opposed demolition in both cases, but treasured buildings like these have little protection now, and under the new plan will have even less.
Local Heritage List
To their great credit the Council have created a Local Heritage List, after years of reluctance. The new plan should make it an important factor in decisions, and leave developers in no doubt that local heritage matters to local people and will be protected. Sheffield’s list has made a good start, but there are hundreds more buildings that deserve to be included, and discovering these and adding them to the list should be part of the plan. Sadly, where other local authorities’ plans have entire policies on maintaining and expanding their Local Heritage Lists, Sheffield’s gives ours only one brief mention.
HHB has already used local listing for Wiggan Farm in Worrall to help influence a planning decision. Local listing for the Highfield Cocoa and Coffee House could have steered the developer away from demolition. It is also another way to ensure that neglected areas get recognition for the places that are valued by local people. The Council is required by law to protect Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas. If it truly wants a reputation for valuing heritage, it needs to do more. That starts with putting Local Heritage List at the heart of the Local Plan.
How you can help
Public consultation ends on 20th February, so there isn’t much time. All comments are sent to the Government’s Planning Inspector who examines the plan for soundness. We don’t think the plan is sound on heritage because it doesn’t make sufficient provision for the conservation and enhancement of the historic environment. If you want to add your voice, go to https://haveyoursaysheffield.uk.engagementhq.com/draft-local-plan and register. To make points about Conservation Areas, Areas of Special Character and the Local Heritage List, we suggest that you fill in the online form, choosing “Part 2 Development Management Policies and Implementation” and “Policy DE9: Development and Heritage Assets”.
Our friends at Joined Up Heritage Sheffield have prepared some detailed advice with step by step instructions for completing the online form. Read their advice here, especially “Heritage that is not protected by law (Policy DE9)”.
You might also want to look for development sites near you. You can comment as many times as you wish to cover different policies and sites.