David Barton is a conservation consultant and writer, advocating for traditional vernacular architecture
The Conservatives must embrace their namesake and pursue actual planning reforms that will benefit everyone in society and more importantly break down societal divides.
To achieve this, there are two facets that must be contended with to transform theory into reality. Firstly, authentic traditional architecture design codes for new construction across any one area and secondly, protecting the built historic environment with maximum legislative support for the collective mechanisms that can deliver both outcomes.
Having campaigned for 12 years for both maximum conservation support and improved planning reforms in local government and more recently in my new role as a Community Campaigner since 2020 I have encountered many key stakeholders central to solving this matter. From residents to businesses, investors, local authority personnel, academics and architects, I have been kept up to date through my continued canvassing as to what is and simply isn’t working.
There are now academic studies conducted by leading Heritage Organisations proving the scientific value of conserving and constructing traditionally, which surpasses the original case that buildings were solely worth either saving or designing purely on aesthetic grounds. Carbon Capacity – the level of carbon trapped within an old build amounts to 80 per cent in comparison to a standard new build at 16 per cent with the country’s entire Carbon Emissions standing at 40 per cent altogether so this has to be acted upon if we are to truly resonate with everyone in society irrespective of background and belief.
One other major advantage to this method is that it does bring communities together and can positively influence people’s everyday respect for where they live and work. This was a central tenet that I articulated at the Bootle Area Action Plan examination hearing before the Planning Inspectorate. I’m pleased to say that this point was agreed upon and comprised a key aspect in the final approved Planning Report.
Whilst there has been significant progress to date, there is still a long way to go towards preventing further avoidable decline of streetscapes up and down the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland alike. This has included routine updates to the NPPF, following open consultation which I myself have contributed to since 2018 and the provision of grant funding, although this has predominantly been limited to the existing historic fabric and not necessarily for new construction.
It is potentially two such achievements that have had the greatest legislative impact that I will elucidate on for the benefit of readers and the wider Conservative movement. These are the exceptional Building Better, Building Beautiful Commission- established by the UK Government in 2018 to improve Design Quality in 2020 and the more recent Protecting Built Heritage Inquiry instigated by the CMS Committee, led by its chairman, Dame Caroline Dinenage MP to identify policy areas deemed critical for review. Both of these instruments have been Conservative-led inside and outside of Government. I have been able to provide published evidence towards the latter item which is still live at the time of writing following a decade’s worth of grassroots experience.
The common constraints for building and conserving old and new traditional architecture alike are multi-tiered and can be broadly categorised as financial, regulatory and determined by supply chains.
Looking towards the historic built environment encompassing buildings and streetscapes and so forth it is essential to identify and take proactive action towards resolving these issues. Whilst criteria such as financial pressures and deficits- repair, maintenance and renewal of cultural venues and skills shortages- lack of skilled practitioners and craftsmen whose skills are at risk of becoming extinct nationally can be mitigated or remedied in part through private investment and frontline Campaigners, such as myself there are many ways identified through the Inquiry already, such as VAT Inequity- presently incentivising demolition over retention of old builds with new builds being VAT – exempt and old builds repairs taxed at 20 per cent, regulatory and bureaucratic barriers- adversely affecting timely and affordable restoration and Net Zero Challenges- retrofitting complex detailed old builds without compromising their heritage value that can be affected positively by Central Government and in turn petitioning from the Conservatives if we are to conserve and defend the existing tapestry of civic heritage.
When considering construction of new traditional architecture and actually materialising design codes that meet approved standards a parallel approach must be adopted if these sister issues are to be overcome. This strand can be completely remedied through direct legislative intervention by Government itself or an effective Opposition. In brief these include regulatory and planning hurdles- stricter sustainability standards, a new planning system and biodiversity net gain, economic and material challenges- rising costs, erratic material prices and supply chain constraints, skilled labour and expertise- specialists skills gap and design resource & pressure and finally integration with modern needs- balancing tradition with technology and retrofit complexity.
In order to meet modern day demands and requirements of key stakeholders new policies that tackle the above factors can and must be a sharp focus for all political parties.
In conclusion the Conservatives have a real opportunity to achieve and deliver their very namesake if they make this a cornerstone of future policy.