Conservation Matters - September 2005
Christchurch Park Restoration
The Heritage Lottery Funded restoration project of Christchurch park is underway and the conservation service has been giving advice on the restoration and refurbishment of a number of park structures.
The Brett Drinking Fountain restoration has been completed by Suffolk Stonemasonry Services. An opening ceremony is planned for the 6th September when the mayor will take the first drink from the fountain.
The Cabman Shelter is currently undergoing restoration and will be installed in its new position at the Westerfield Road entrance to the Park in the near future.
The Arts and Crafts Shelter in the Arboretum is also being refurbished including re tiling the roof, repainting, and restoring the seating to the original pattern. The shelter should be ready for use in late September.
Two information days on the restoration project are planned for Thursday 8th and Friday 9th of September. A display will be on view near to the Arts and Crafts Shelter in the Arboretum from 12 noon to 3pm. The Parks service are offering guided walks around the park to look at the various sites involved in the HLF project. A place on the walks can be booked on 433500 and the Park Mobile will be available on request for those with mobility problems.
New sculpture on Major's Corner
We have commissioned a new piece of public art which has been installed on the public toilets at Majors Corner. The sculpture was unveiled by Mayor Wright on the 22nd August and is designed and made by artist Paul Richardson. The figure is of a major swatting flies from the parapet of the building. Paul Richardson has designed one other piece of sculpture in the town, The Dancers at Ipswich Hospital.
The Temple of Remembrance
In May the Department for Culture, Media and Sport listed the Temple Grade II. This fine building in the New Cemetery was built in 1935 and designed by J A Sherman, a prominent local architect. The Temple adds to the 21 listed 20th century buildings in the town which range from the former National Westminster Bank now the Chelsea Building Society in Princes built in 1901 to Lord Norman Foster's Willis building built in 1973-5.
National Maintenance Week 18th – 25th November 2005
The prime aim of The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings annual National Maintenance is to provide homeowners throughout the UK with practical tips and advice on maintaining their properties in preparation for winter. Such simple, economic and achievable maintenance can stave off costly major faults and damage at a later date.
To coincide with the national campaign the Conservation Service is planning raise the profile of maintenance with owners of historic buildings within the town during that week. Details will be available on the website in October.
Conservation Matters - May 2005
New life for St Peter's Church
St Peter's church was made redundant in 1981. In that time the church has been used as a base for a model railway club but in recent years has been empty anticipating a new use. A local music group, Music For Health, is making a substantial bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund to convert St Peter's into a centre for music and the arts. The facilities will be for the use of local performing arts and music societies at an affordable price. As part of the project the church will extend its daily opening times to enable the public a better chance to view this fine medieval building. Ipswich Borough Council is giving £100,000 towards the cost and other bodies such as the Care of Churches Trust are also contributing. The cost of the project overall is estimated to be £600,000.
Brett Drinking Fountain
As part of the Christchurch Park restoration plan, the Brett Fountain is being restored. Stonemason Paul Templeton will be repairing the stonework and works to the water pipes will be carried out to enable the fountain to work for the first time in modern times. This project is the start of a large schedule of works planned for the park which is being funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund.
Chantry Park Conservation Area
On the 29th March 2005 the Executive Committee of the Borough Council declared Chantry Park a conservation area. This park is listed Grade II on the National Register of Parks and Gardens and this designation will bring further protection to this important green space.
Buildings At Risk
The 2005 Buildings At Risk register for Suffolk will be published in the summer. This register is collated and produced by Suffolk County Council with information from District Councils and Ipswich Borough Council and will be available to buy from Suffolk County Council at Endeavour House. The register aims to highlight the plight of and raise interest in deteriorating and neglected listed buildings throughout Suffolk
Conservation Matters - January 2005
Rennovation of 19 Tower Street
This Grade II* 18th century building is undergoing a series of works to preserve the brick façade at the rear of the building. The brickwork was in poor condition in places, much of the original lime mortar was deteriorating and previous cement repairs were causing further damage to the brickwork. In October 2004 the Borough Council instigated a programme of repairs which involved repointing the whole of the rear elevation in a lime mortar reproduced from analysis of the original. Repairs to the brickwork were also carried out with selective replacement of bricks and reinstatement of some fine gauged brick arches over some window openings. Further repairs to the windows are planned for Spring 2005.
Holywells Orangery
The Orangery and the Stable Block in Holywells Park, both Grade II listed, are all that remains of Holywells House built in 1814 by John Cobbold which was demolished in 1962. Built in the 1850s the orangery was used to display exotic plants collected on voyages of the Cobbold fleet. The building has suffered badly from the elements and vandalism over the last few years resulting in the loss of a quantity of glass. In January this year the Council erected a temporary structure around the building to protect it. The shell will remain in place whilst the future of the orangery is planned as part of the Heritage Lottery Fund bid for Holywells Park.
New Home for the Cabman's Shelter
In September 2004 it was announced that Christchurch Park had secured £3 million funding for the its restoration. One of the plans involves a permanent site for the Cabmans shelter. Built in 1892 the shelter, a gift from the mayor, used to stand on the Cornhill, in the early 19th century it was moved to Christchurch Park and has since suffered badly from vandalism and fire damage. It is now in a temporary store in the park but it will soon be moving off site to be fully restored and then it will be returned to the park and the position of its permament home is to be finalised.
Protection for The Walk
The Walk was designed by Ipswich architects Cautley and Barefoot in 1932-3 and is a fine example of a pedestrian only thoroughfare with reproduction half-timbered narrow-fronted shops, fine carved details to shopfronts and yorkstone paving. In January this year the Secretary of State granted an Article 4 Direction on The Walk. This means that permission will be required for alterations to be made to the shop fronts and protects the yorkstone paving. These measures will help to maintain the areas special interest and architectural harmony. This Article 4 Direction is unusual in that it applies to a commercial area and is one of only a few in the country.
Paving of Stoke Quays
As part of the regeneration of Ipswich Waterfront the western part of Stoke Quays is to have new paving and street lighting from Mather Way to Bath Street. This scheme forms part of an overall project to create better access to enable the public to visit and enjoy the waterfront. At the eastern end of Stoke Quays a public art project is underway to bring local artists work to the area. Artists will be asked to create innovative pieces which could reflect on the history of the dock. This project is funded by Ipswich Borough Council, East of England Development Agency (EEDA) and the Associated British Ports.
Advice on Prosecutions
Because of its past experience and successes, the Conservation Service has recently been asked by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister to advise Government on the best approach to improving the performance of English local authorities concerning successful prosecution for the three Listed building offences of unauthorised alteration, criminal damage and failure to comply with a Listed Building Enforcement Notice.
This initiative is likely to result in good practice procedural advice for local authority planning and legal staff. Currently few local authorities are taking action in the courts even where this is desirable. The discussions, which have also involved English Heritage and the Judicial Standards Board will also aim to better inform Magistrates about the issues.
Please contact Conservation if you you would like to know more about any of the items in this newsletter or if you have any queries about conservation in Ipswich.
Related Pages
Considerations when changing the use of an historic building
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