When is “not a building” a building? When it is a Listed Building…
Recent musings by the Supreme Court [Dill vs SoS 2020] on the nature of listed buildings and challenging their designation set me wondering about what this could, theoretically, mean for the current rather ample list.
It will not be a surprise to many practitioners to learn that the list (in England) contains c. 2,900 milestones (listed in their own right), well over 5,000 individual monuments and 6,000 plus memorials (probably more but I stopped counting), at least 860 statues, a good hundred plus signs / sign posts and a fair few “vases” – just to name a few “not a building” listed buildings.
Many of these listings would challenge the oft quoted Skerritts criteria around size, permanence etc – and to those lucky souls who do not live in the world of heritage – they are clearly not “buildings”.
So, what happens now post-Dill? Do we see a gentle tide of challenges funnelled through PINS seeking to roll back half a century of ever inclusive listing? Maybe a short clarification to the 1990 Act? Or perhaps, let’s not hold our breath, an up-to-date Historic Environment Bill / Act to clarify matters (building on the, now historic, 2008 Heritage White Paper..), or do we convert these listed “buildings” to scheduled “monuments”?
My guess is that we will see applicants increasingly challenge issues associated with these types of “not buildings”, a sequence of challenges that will work their way through the courts until government and its advisors feel they need to act – until then I think we can all look forward to debating what makes something “a building”...
Read the Heritage Protection for the 21st Century: White Paper here.
If you want to know more or discuss the matter, just contact Andrew Croft, Director.