Conservation Areas

What is a Conservation Area?

Conservation Areas within Reading are designated by Reading Borough Council and are defined in legislation as: "Areas of special architectural or historic interest, the character which it is desirable to preserve or enhance".

Conservation legislation's primary role aims to protect large groups of buildings and related open spaces.

The special interest of an area can be the result of a number of characteristic, such as an historic street pattern, traditional buildings styles, association with an historic event or figure, or a local industry or trade and will often be centred around a listed building.

Conservation Areas within Reading vary in character from Victorian suburbs at The Mount, to village centres at Horncastle and St Peter's and formal Georgian/Regency townscapes at Eldon Square. The designation of a conservation area helps to identify these important local characteristics and ensure they are properly considered if changes are proposed.

Where are the Conservation Areas within Reading. Detailed maps showing the boundary of each area are held by Reading Borough Council and are available for inspection at the Planning Reception, ground floor of the Civic Centre.

Distribution of Conservation Areas within Reading Borough Council

	Area Name		Area Name
1	Surley Row	9	Routh Lane Tilehurst
2	St. Peters	10	The Mount
3	Market Place/London Street	11	Horncastle
4	Russell St/Castle Hill	12	Redlands
5	St. Mary's Butts/Castle Street	13	Christchurch
6	Eldon Square	14	Alexandra Road
7	South Park	15	Kendrick Road (Proposed)
8	Downshire Square

Living in a Conservation Area

Reading Borough Council is committed to conserving and enhancing conservation areas. In practice this is carried out through the use of additional planning controls and increased attention to detailed environmental improvements. The council aims to promote the retention of traditional building materials. For example timber windows are preferred to plastic or similar replacement windows. Appropriate street furniture and planting is also sought.

In addition to the usual planning controls there are other works in Conservation Areas for which you will need further permission. This is an addition to regulations relating to house extensions, garden buildings, boundary walls, fences and advertisements. The list below is not definitive. It is always advisable, if you are thinking about carrying out work in a conservation area to first contact the planning department. Works, which need further permission include:

• Demolition or partial demolition of some garden walls and fences
• Demolition or partial demolition of a building larger than 115 cubic metres in volume.
• Any work to trees
• Roof alterations e.g. adding a dormer window or the removal of chimney stacks.
• The addition of cladding to the outside of the house.
• Control over the installation of satellite dishes.

Character and Appearance

The character and appearance of conservation areas are easily damaged through insensitive alterations, which can often be outside of planning control. Therefore it is important that residents and people who work in conservation areas respect the special qualities of the conservation area.

Businesses in Conservation Areas

Conservation area controls aims to protect the environmental quality of that area. Therefore there are controls on commercial properties within conservation areas. If any external alterations are proposed the planning department should be consulted. The design of shop front and advertisements is very important in conservation areas, in order to protect the character oft he area any advertisement which are judged to be detrimental to the appearance of the area will be discouraged.

Demolition

Written Conservation Area Consent is required for the full or part demolition of any building or structure, including some outhouses and walls within a conservation area. Some small structures may be exempt. However, if any demolition is considered it is best to contact the planning department to check if consent is required.

Listed Buildings in Conservation Area

If the building is listed then Listed Building Consent is required where any alterations or extensions as well as any form of demolition are proposed. For further information see A Guide to listed building Consent at  the top right hand side of this page.

Works to Trees

Trees make a significant contribution to the character of a conservation area. 6 weeks prior written notice must be given to the planning department if you want to carry out any works to trees in a conservation area. The 6 week period enables the council to consider if a tree preservation order should be made. No works should be carried out during this period without written permission from the council.

Some trees in conservation areas already have the added protection of a Tree Preservation Order (TPO). You must have the Council's consent before any works to these trees can be undertaken. For further information see "Trees in Reading - A Guide to Tree Preservation Orders" at the top right hand side of this page.

For advice to Planning and Conservation Area contact:

If the information you are looking for is not here, or you wish to send us your comments, please use the contact link at the top right of this page.

Other useful Contacts and further information

English Heritage 23 Savile Row London W1X 1AB Tel: 0870 33 1181	Ancient Monuments Society St. Anne's Vestry Hall 2 Church Entry London EC4V 5HB
Victorian Society 1 Priory Gardens Bedford Park London W4 1TT Tel: 020 8994 1019	Georgian Group 6 Fitzroy Square London W1P 6DX Tel: 020 3787 1720
Department of Culture Media and Sport 2-4 Cockspur Street London SW1Y 5DH Tel: 020 7211 6200	Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings 37 Spital Square London E1 6DY Tel: 020 7377 1644
Department of Transport Local Government & Regions Govt. Office for the South East Bridge House, 1 Walnut Tree Close Guildford, Surrey GU1 4GA Tel: 020 7944 3000

Downloads

PDF

Some of the following documents are in pdf format. You can download and install a free PDF reader to enable you to read and print them. Click here to download Adobe Acrobat (PDF) Reader from the Adobe website.

File	Type	Size	Download Time
Alexandra Road Conservation Area Appraisal	PDF	157 KB	56Kbps Modem: 40 Seconds Broadband : 3 Seconds
Alexandra Road Conservation Area Map	PDF	125 KB	56Kbps Modem: 32 Seconds Broadband : 2 Seconds
Downshire Square Conservation Area Appraisal	PDF	1,631 KB	56Kbps Modem: 6 Minutes Broadband : 33 Seconds
Eldon Square Conservation Area Character Appraisal	PDF	1,530 KB	56Kbps Modem: 6 Minutes Broadband : 31 Seconds
Kendrick Conservation Area Character Appraisal	PDF	2,934 KB	56Kbps Modem: 12 Minutes Broadband : 1 Minute
Kendrick Road Conservation Area Map	PDF	312 KB	56Kbps Modem: 1 Minute Broadband : 6 Seconds
Market Place and London Street Conservation Area Appraisal	PDF	1,391 KB	56Kbps Modem: 5 Minutes Broadband : 28 Seconds
The Mount Conservation Area Appraisal	PDF	799 KB	56Kbps Modem: 3 Minutes Broadband : 16 Seconds
Redlands Conservation Area Character Appraisal	PDF	437 KB	56Kbps Modem: 1 Minute Broadband : 8 Seconds
Russell Street/Castle Hill Conservation Area Appraisal	PDF	135 KB	56Kbps Modem: 34 Seconds Broadband : 2 Seconds
Russell Street/Castle Hill Conservation Area Map (showing changes)	PDF	1,325 KB	56Kbps Modem: 5 Minutes Broadband : 27 Seconds
St Mary's Butts and Castle Street Conservation Area Character Appraisal	PDF	637 KB	56Kbps Modem: 2 Minutes Broadband : 13 Seconds
St Peters Conservation Area Appraisal	PDF	1,568 KB	56Kbps Modem: 6 Minutes Broadband : 32 Seconds
South Park Conservation Area Appraisal	PDF	504 KB	56Kbps Modem: 2 Minutes Broadband : 10 Seconds