RTPI CPD

1. A Future for Rural Buildings –
Farmstead Assessment Guidance
Jeremy Lake
English Heritage

2. Where were we?
• Very poor evidence base
• 1993 Policy statement
• Presumption against residential conversion
• Reflected in a significant number of local plans
• No evaluation of the policy
Where we wanted to be
• An updated policy framework which:
• Is evidence-based
• Is founded on an evaluation of previous policy
• Recognises the reality of modern agriculture
• Is more responsive to regional and local variation –
works with and from the landscape context

3. The forces for change
5% of farms already produce 80% of output,
and further decline in number of
businesses especially in upland areas
31% of listed farm buildings converted to
other uses
80% of permissions granted for change to
residential use
guidance reflects limited knowledge of the
nature and character of historic
farmsteads
uncertainty on the impact of proposals for
reuse
imprecise targetting of resources

4. New policy promotes positive means of managing change which
align an understanding of the characteristics of historic farmsteads
with their potential for and sensitivity to change
www.helm.org.uk/farmbuildings

5. Extending the Evidence Base
Farmsteads Mapping, which rapidly
identifies and describes the historic
character of ALL farmsteads, and the
extent to which they have changed since
around 1900, in their landscape and
settlement context.
Mapping Current Use and Context,
which uses the results of Farmsteads
Mapping to reveal the current social and
economic role of farmsteads.
Photo Image Survey, which has used
existing sources of photographic
evidence to deepen understanding of the
rates of dereliction and development
amongst traditional farm buildings at
the local authority and National
Character Area level.

6. Change and Use in the West
Midlands
• 88% of traditional farmsteads from
around 1900 retaining some or all
of their working buildings.
• A very low proportion (under 20%)
of surviving traditional farmsteads
are designated as national assets.

7. National Planning Policy Framework
• The NPPF identifies the need for local planning authorities
to ‘provide up to date evidence about the historic
environment in their area (paragraph 169) and prepare local
planning guidance which uses historically-based landscape
character assessment (paragraph 170). In supporting a
prosperous rural economy ‘Planning policies should
support economic growth in rural areas in order to create
jobs and prosperity by taking a positive approach to
sustainable new development’ (Paragraph 28). Means of
promoting this through local and neighbourhood plans
include the ‘conversion of existing buildings and well-
designed new buildings’.

8. Tools: Demand for a product
• which is easy to use, amend and update;
• is suited to a wide variety of applications;
• helps identify key farmstead and building types in their
landscape context;
• links local distinctiveness to the broader regional and
national picture
• informs and guides decisions about the options for
sustainable reuse;
• guides best practice, through flagging key design issues
and links to other more detailed guidance.

9. Planning Tools
can be applied to different needs and circumstances
WHAT DO I HAVE?
Farmstead Character Guidance, which
allows users to understand the character
and significance of farmsteads at a
national and local level.
WHAT ARE THE OPTIONS AND
ISSUES?
Assessment Frameworks, applicable to
large areas, such as estates and local
authorities, or to individual farmsteads
for informing planning and land
management decisions.
The key principles of the approach are
based on understanding
• The character of farmsteads, which
results from their historic development
and function as whole sites, including
any routeways and spaces within and
around them, and how they are linked to
the surrounding landscape and
settlement.
• Their significance, a factor that can be
of critical importance in determining
planning applications.
• Their sensitivity to the different options
for change, both now and in the future.

10. National and Area Guidance
CONSISTENT HEADINGS
AND TERMS
Summary of Character,
Significance and Issues
Historic Development
Landscape and Settlement
Farmstead and Building Types
Materials and Detail
pilot Defra website at: www.farmsteadstoolkit.co.uk

11. Local Guidance - Farmstead and
Landscapes Statements

12. Assessment - Cavendish Estates
Pilot Study for Land Management
Assessing Options and their
Impact
• Collapse
• Holding Repair
• Convert
• Restore

13. Area and Site Assessment

14. Site Assessment

15. Case study

16. Historic Farmsteads: New Uses
General Design Issues
• Setting
• Daylight
• Subdivision
• Retaining features
• Incorporating
services and adding
insulation

17. Prevailing
weather
Potential for
additional
landscaping
Lost or derelict heritage
assets

18. ‘Pursuing sustainable development involves seeking positive improvements in
the quality of the built, natural and historic environment... including….
replacing poor design with better design..’ (para 9)
Use an understanding of the plan form of the farmstead, and how it has changed, to
inform the siting of new buildings that are sensitive to and enhance the historic
character of the site.

19. Hazelden

20. Hazelden