Historic buildings go on protection register (From Worcester News)

Historic buildings go on protection register

10:30am Wednesday 9th January 2013 in News By Tom Edwards

PROTECTED: The iconic Great Western Hotel in Shrub Hill Road, Worcester, has now been added to a vital register.

TWENTY historic buildings across Worcester have been added to a vital register aimed at protecting them for years to come.

The Fownes Hotel, Holy Trinity Church and St Paul’s Hostel are just three of 20 new additions to the Buildings of Local Significance list. The register, which is updated yearly, means council chiefs will keep tabs on each site to make sure they are properly maintained and protected.

It also means they are given added protection from any future planning applications for demolition because of their importance, making it far less likely they could be torn down. The list now has 153 entries and is publicly available to view.

Councillor David Wilkinson, the city council’s heritage champion, said: “I am very pleased with the way the register is looking and the key thing to remember is that it raises the profile of all those buildings on it. It flags up the existence of buildings which are well-loved locally or have special significance to the city, and members of the public are very welcome to suggest new additions to it.” It means if the city council’s planning committee has to examine an application to make changes to any of the sites in the future, it should take heed of their importance to the public.

The register’s new additions include pubs, hotels, churches, business units, residential properties and other sites that have been deemed important.

All have been selected because they contribute socially, economically or historically to Worcester, or have architectural merit.

Sites can also be included if they are good examples of work done by builders of esteem. Adrian Warburton, the manager at St Paul’s Hostel, one of the new sites to appear on it, said: “This is excellent news for us – it’s nice to know we’ve been recognised in this way. It’s a good feeling.”

To see the updated register, visit worcester.gov.uk and use the search box to type in ‘buildings of local significance’. New entries on the list are: Holy Trinity Church, Shrub Hill Road; St Paul’s Hostel, Tallow Hill; the Great Western Hotel, Shrub Hill Road. Properties at 24-26 Hallow Road: Isaac Maddox House, Shrub Hill Road; the former Berwick Temperance Hotel, Lowesmoor Place; the Bridge Inn, Lowesmoor Terrace; units seven, eight and 17D, Shrub Hill industrial estate; the former Golden Heart pub, Sansome Street; numbers one to 11 Mayfield Road; the Fownes Hotel, Clare Street; number 41 St Nicholas Street, occupied by A V Band; number 13 London Road; Annett’s Garage, Carden Street; government fuel storage depot, Bath Road; Henwick Grove Lodge, Oldbury Road.