Industrial Heritage at Risk

One of the problems with EH listing status is that it does not actually protect the buildings, it merely guides planning authorities in approving or preventing development.

There is barely any legal pressure on the owners of Listed Buildings to maintain them in servicable condition and sometimes they are merely left to deteriorate until demolition is the only option.

One typical case is the former RAF Bicester. The technical area, managed by Defence Estates, is listed by English Heritage as being one of the most original, complete sets of buildings making up an early WW11 ‘expansion era’ aerodrome. It is authentic still down to having its 1940 air raid shelters and AA emplacements.

It has however received the bare minimum of ‘care and maintenance’ over the past 20 or so years. It seems D.E. won’t allow anyone access to survey the current state of the buildings, but that fact that there is allegedly a tree growing through the roof of one of the early 1930s hangars, perhaps says it all!

The good news is that the rest of the airfield is being kept in good order by Windrushers Gliding Club. Hopefully someone will come along who can help save the rest!

“The interest in the heritage of specific locations and artefacts becomes more diluted not only with the passage of time but also with ever diminishing number of people associated with the purpose of each building or factory in its heyday.”

This is a key sentence. What is of importance to us now may well be of little or no interest to our descendants. It may be of little interest now to younger people for whom the artefact or building means nothing. Since we cannot preserve everything the judgement of the value of something for preservation is highly subjective. I stand to be corrected but I suspect we have one of the most vigorous arrangements for the preservation of objects and buildings in the world.

This from the National Historic Ships site…
http://www.nationalhistoricships.org.uk/news.php/205/english-heritage-launches-industrial-heritage-at-risk-research

What factories, airport terminals, control towers do you consider to be at risk?

Depends where, in the Medway Towns in Kent its any building thats old that hasn’t got something to do with Charles Dickens. Rochester airport for instance is always threatened with the bulldozer. Other older buildings have already gone in the craze to cover the place in concrete and tin sheds.

Graham

The interest in the heritage of specific locations and artefacts becomes more diluted not only with the passage of time but also with ever diminishing number of people associated with the purpose of each building or factory in its heyday. Enthusiasts, for whichever subject you may care to choose, can only do so much to engender support.

In English Heritage’s defence, I would say that they are making great strides to encompass all aspects of the built environment and not just the traditional view of “historic buildings”. Their Blue Plaque scheme even extends to motorsport these days with recent recipients recording personalities such as Graham Hill and Sir Malcolm and Donald Campbell. The 20th Century Society, which was founded as The Thirties Society following a major exhibition of “between the wars” design at the Hayward Gallery in 1979, has been particularly influential in encouraging a wider view of heritage matters relating to more recent times and, especially, industry.

I do agree, however, that if aviation – and any other transport field – is to take its place alongside the likes of the Hoover Building, then any additional voices that can create or augment such support will be vital.

In the motorsport field, there has been much discussion already. This is a link to a relevant thread on Autosport’s The Nostalgia Forum.

http://forums.autosport.com/index.php?showtopic=64736&hl=factory+sites

It matters not what you consider at risk! IF your favourite structure doesn’t already impress English Heritage (and they’re usually not interested in what you think) then you’re on your own.

We need a system that protects those buildings that WE consider important and not that just ticks all the right boxes for some academic. We also need enthusiasts who haven’t already written off what needs to be saved. If you don’t have fellow enthusiasts on your side then forget it.

I would like EH to introduce Grade III Listed Status, which would protect a building from being demolished, but would give the developer more leeway. There is no lottery money for restoring aerodrome buildings, so any sympathetic redevelopment has to be financially viable (profitable), and restoring a building with listed status is rarely profitable, unless the builder is given more leeway.

Without listing them all individually, how many airfields are heritage listed, how many buildings are listed per airport and how many other aviation buildings are listed where the airport is not?

regards

Mark Pilkington

David,
Almost all of them if the money is right, the political will weak (or biased), and EH’s ability to slap Listed Building status on whatever is severely neutered by a central administration intent on pandering to The Developers in the hope that some of their ill-gotten gains will be given to whichever political party’s war-chest(s) offer to slacken the rules governing Planning Permission.
It is c.15 miles Heathrow to Central London. It is c. 39 miles Central London to Foulness. If some Developer says “I will build an airport to the highest international standards at Foulness. And if you let me bulldoze a few houses/villages/towns then I can get you from Foulness to Central London in less time than it currently takes from Heathrow”. Now I don’t know who owns the freehold of London Airport, but you can imagine them salivating at the profit to be made selling Heathrow for housing development. Heathrow is also on the “wrong” side of London – too many people, too much housing. Essex, on the other hand, would make life a lot easier for many (except, of course, those who’s houses/villages/towns are to be bulldozed) low population density, low value agricultural use, etc, etc.
Now I have no financial interest in a Foulness Airport, but I just wish to try to make sure that the “Save Everything At All Cost” brigade are prepared to look at the hard, cold, decisions that very well might – in the not too distant future – be made by individuals, companies, local councils, and even Parliaments (provided we can manage to elect one with not too many Spoiled Ballot Papers if AV is introduced!).
Reality is a nasty thing. Preserving heritage comes a very poor second.
HTH
Resmoroh

This from the National Historic Ships site…
http://www.nationalhistoricships.org.uk/news.php/205/english-heritage-launches-industrial-heritage-at-risk-research

What factories, airport terminals, control towers do you consider to be at risk?

It matters not what you consider at risk! IF your favourite structure doesn’t already impress English Heritage (and they’re usually not interested in what you think) then you’re on your own.

We need a system that protects those buildings that WE consider important and not that just ticks all the right boxes for some academic. We also need enthusiasts who haven’t already written off what needs to be saved. If you don’t have fellow enthusiasts on your side then forget it.

I would like EH to introduce Grade III Listed Status, which would protect a building from being demolished, but would give the developer more leeway. There is no lottery money for restoring aerodrome buildings, so any sympathetic redevelopment has to be financially viable (profitable), and restoring a building with listed status is rarely profitable, unless the builder is given more leeway.