Council set to grant Glebe Estate conservation status, overruling residents’ objections

Image: Glebe Estate; Photograph by R Szwagrzak

Council blame misinformation for significant opposition from Glebe Estate residents

Hounslow Council is poised to designate Glebe Estate in Chiswick a Conservation Area, a move that has sparked opposition from many of the estate’s residents. The decision, expected to be finalised by the Cabinet on Tuesday 3 September, will be made despite what the Council has described as a ‘campaign of misinformation’ that has driven opposition to the proposal.

They say their intention is to protect the architectural and historic character of Glebe Estate. The residents who are resisting the change fear it will curtail their current Permitted Development rights which allow homeowners to make certain alterations to their properties without the need for planning permission.

The residents who oppose the Glebe estate becoming a Conservation Area argue the Council wants to take away those rights to “make us pay more for improvements to the exterior of our homes.”

The estate has been identified as a site of historical and architectural importance, as it was Chiswick’s first working-class housing estate. The well-preserved Victorian terraces are a testament to Chiswick’s heritage as the home of skilled craftsmen in the Victorian era, who came here when the expansion of the railway system led to a period of rapid building development.

When the proposed Conservation Area was first mooted, resident Tracy Logan wrote this guest blog for The Chiswick Calendar arguing the case for it:

READ ALSO: The Glebe Estate considered for Conservation status

Among those to have lived in the Glebe Estate was the writer Anthony Burgess, author of A Clockwork Orange. When he and his wife lived there in the 1960s the Glebe Estate was considered quite ‘rough’ but it has become a much sought after place to live, with two bedroom terraced houses changing hands at well over a million pounds.

READ ALSO: Anthony Burgess blue plaque bid

Image: Glebe Estate; Photograph by R Szwagrzak

Spread of “inaccurate or incomplete information” has led to “some disquiet” says Hounslow Council

A report for the consideration of Hounslow’s Cabinet states the Council has a legal obligation to consider Conservation status for Glebe Estate because of its architectural and cultural significance.

Under Section 69 of the Planning (Listed Building and Conservation Areas) Act 1990, the Council has a statutory duty to designate areas of special architectural or historic interest, “the character or appearance of which it is desirable to preserve or enhance.”

This responsibility is focused on the protection of the built environment, not on the preferences of the current residents. The report emphasises the designation process is separate from the concerns of homeowners and is not considered an infringement of their rights.

It adds that the Council is not legally required to carry out a consultation at all, but chose to do so, following advice from Historic England, stressing that the purpose of the consultation was not to alter the principle of the designation but to enhance residents’ understanding of what it entails.

Photograph of the day by Bridget Osborne

Image: Glebe Estate; Photograph Bridget Osborne 

There have been two consultations and it says both have been marred by what they describe as people who are either misinformed or misunderstand the proposals.

The first consultation led to a campaign of opposition against designation, partly at the instigation of someone who spread inaccurate information.”

The second seems to have fared no better:

“Regrettably, as with the first consultation, some have taken the opportunity to seek to garner support for their opposition either through circulating information they have failed to understand in the public domain (without seeking clarification from the Council), or by spreading inaccurate or incomplete information, which has led to some disquiet.”

The report clarifies that while some Permitted Development rights would indeed be limited, the restrictions are not as severe as some residents believe. Planning permission would be required for specific types of developments, such as an extension that extends beyond the side wall of the building, any two-storey extension and cladding any part of the outside of a building with materials such as stone, artificial stone, timber, plastic or tile.

It also points out the costs associated with these planning requirements are not prohibitive, especially given the high property values within the Glebe Estate.

‘The average cost of a roof extension is £60-100,000 pounds and the cost of a planning application on top of that is not considered prohibitive if you can already afford that and will be recouped by the increased price of the house that arises from it being in a conservation area.’