Conservation Statements

Conservation statements are briefer than conservation plans, and seek to establish the significance of a building, monument or site.

The conservation statement should establish a historic building, monument or site’s significance, and explain its context and what is of value. 

Conservation Statements may be required as part of a detailed planning application or application for listed building consent. It may be a funder requirement or a desire by a client to better understand the site’s significance. We can provide such statements and present the appropriate material to allow a planning department or conservation officer and client to properly listen to our case. 

When proposing change to historic environments it is essential to be able to demonstrate that the heritage asset has been properly appreciated and understood. The conservation statement is a concise method of doing this.

When providing full architectural services for works to a historic building or site we prepare these documents or the full conservation plan. We can also prepare them in the role of Conservation Advisor to assist design teams where we are not the principle architect.

Conservation Statements may be included within an overall design statement, as was done in the example below prepared for alterations and extensions to a shooting lodge on a remote Scottish island. Details have been removed for privacy reasons.

The Existing Buildings

The main estate house, like many Scottish Country Houses, was built in a series of stages.

The first phase began in the 1840s and is a simple but substantial rectangular plan arrangement with two main storeys plus basement and attic storey. It has an impressive three-story tower and single storey bay both to the south side. The attic storey has a piended dormer and gablet.

In 1881 a substantial extension was added to the east designed in a matching style. The extension has higher ceiling heights and hence higher rooflines but is otherwise very similar to the original house in its Architectural language and detailing.

The walls of the house are coated in render and scored to give a mock ashlar effect. This technique was often done on buildings of this period. Stone margins and cills are used around windows and for other Architectural details including stone balustrading on the tower, porch roof and arched entrance porch.

A later extension was then built to the West of the house. This extension is a single storey plus basement. Whilst designed and built with a degree of consideration in the way that it relates to the older sections of the house it is in character considerably plainer and more modest than the earlier sections of the house. This portion of the house is of significantly less design quality than the main sections with none of the Architectural embellishments seen on the main areas nor any attempt at architectural expression. The date of this section is unknown.

At the rear, north side of the house there are a range of semi basement service spaces. The date of this construction is not known but the relationship with the latest phase of building described above and shown in the photograph number 3 below of the north side would indicate that it was constructed as part of that phase or perhaps later. The style of this section is plain, simple and understated.

The House has been listed Category C(S). Refer Appendix 2.

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