HISTORICAL
ASSESSMENT AND SURVEY OF OLD BUILDINGS
An Advice Note for Those Who Care
About Them
"And behold a
wall on the outside of the house round about, and in the man’s hand a
measuring reed of six cubits long by the cubit and an hand breadth: so
he measured the breadth of the building, one reed: and the height, one
reed."
Thus the Prophet Ezekiel,
writing about 600BC, begins his extraordinarily long and detailed
account of the survey of a temple (in Chapters 40, 41 and 42 of his
Book).
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1. THE STATUTORY LIST
There are many reasons for studying an historic building. Threat of
demolition, need for repairs, proposed alterations, heritage planning or
simply the curiosity and enthusiasm of an owner or a researcher, all
demand knowledge of the features, the historical significance and the
antiquity of a building.
The first question is whether the building is indeed
historic. Perhaps it looks ancient, or perhaps its name or its repute
proclaims its antiquity. If it is believed that a building may be of
historic importance, the Statutory List is the first place to
look. The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport is responsible
for compiling the Statutory List of buildings of special architectural
or historic interest. The purpose of listing is to
give a building statutory protection against unauthorised
demolition, alteration or extension. It forms a part of the planning
process administered by local planning authorities and by Central
Government.
English Heritage is responsible for providing expert advice
on which buildings meet the criteria for listing and for administering
that part of the process. It is in fact rather difficult to find out
exactly what the criteria are. There is a procedure for requesting
English Heritage to put a building on the Statutory List, but it is only
sensible to have clear grounds for believing a building is of historic
importance, before embarking upon this.
A copy of a List entry may be obtained
from the local planning authority, from Kent County Council or from the
National Monuments Record (Tel: 01793 414 600). Many local
libraries also have a copy of their local Statutory List.
Despite all this, it has to be said that the information in
the Statutory List is not always correct. In particular, the List
frequently underestimates the age of a building. This is quite
understandable, as dateable features are often concealed by alterations
made to a building during a long lifetime.
Helpful information may be found on the web pages of the Department for
Culture, Media and Sport, the Department for Communities and Local
Government, and English Heritage. These are given in Annexe 1.
2. PUBLISHED LISTS AND BOOKS DESCRIBING OLD
BUILDINGS
A building may not have met the criteria for inclusion on the Statutory
List. There are some alternative sources of information on old buildings
in Kent, the first being a
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