Extract from Council website:

9 September 2011  -  The role that conservation plays in the planning process at St Albans City and District Council is set to be reviewed.
The aim of the review is to ensure that the Council’s planning decisions result in developments which are sensitive to the character and identity of the District.

At a meeting on 6 September, Cabinet requested that the relevant Overview and Scrutiny Committee looks at the Council’s planning conservation function taking into account factors such as:

• how the conservation function is delivered
• the quality of the decision making
• the process by which conservation input is monitored
• the qualifications of officers.

The Overview and Scrutiny Committee is able to consider council processes and issues in detail and to make recommendation to Cabinet on any improvements that are needed.

Councillor Teresa Heritage, Portfolio Holder for Planning and Conservation at the Council, said: “Conservation is of great importance to the City and District which has a number of buildings and areas of architectural and historical significance. Cabinet has asked for a review to ensure that planning decisions are made with due regard to conservation issues. ”

further details can be seen on the Council's website.

Demise of Conservation and Design

27 June 2011

to: Councillor Julian Daly

Since September 2009, there has been ongoing correspondence with the Council in which the Society (and the Arch & Arch, and others) have expressed concern at proposals to disband the Conservation and Design team. On various occasions we recorded public denials from the then planning portfolio holder.

Things, however, did happen. First came the departure of Andrew Robley, a highly experienced officer. Then, surviving Conservation and Design personnel were absorbed into and dispersed around the planning department. This has been followed by the departure of other experienced staff, like Peter Smith and, most recently, Jayne West.

Who is left? We believe the Council now has an officer who deals with Conservation and Design matters as just a part of their duties, where only two years ago it had five full-time officers. Other experienced members of the planning department have also gone. So, within just a few years, the Council has gone from being able to boast of the only Conservation and Design department in Hertfordshire, to what is left today. Hardly impressive for an historic Cathedral city. It makes an utter mockery of the strap lines on Council letters and publications; and of the aspirations in the City Vision, the draft Core Strategy, and so on.

Put bluntly, this is very, very disturbing. In the hope of focussing the attention of the new adminis­tration, the Society would like answers to the following questions:

  • Why, despite the vehement denials of members of the previous administration, has this happened?

  • Who has presided over such a disastrous policy?

  • Will Conservation and Design be restored to its rightful place?

Like Health and Safety, Conservation and Design is a necessity; it needs to be an integrated function with dedicated staff and not an occasional luxury. Heritage assets, once lost, are lost for good. For example, which member of the Council staff is ensuring that historic features in the old Bell in Chequer Street have not been lost in the current internal demolition? Conservation and Design is a significant aspect of the Council's responsibilities, and staff are required with skill and time to carry out the necessary work.

The Society would welcome your comments.