JDDK Millmount News - Winter Edition 2023 - Magazine - Page 8
T H E D I S C O V E RY
Development that
honours heritage
Samantha Dixon,
JDDK Associate and Accredited
Conservation Architect
Historic England estimates there are around 500,000 listed buildings
on the National Heritage List for England. These listed buildings,
some of which we are supporting clients to redevelop, aren’t just
monuments to the past either, England’s heritage sector directly
contributes £14bn in gross value added (GVA) to the UK economy.
The monetary, cultural, and emotional value of these historic
buildings mean its vital that when reimagining them, we honour
their heritage and take a thoughtful approach to development.
Working with heritage buildings also opens opportunities to
create some amazing spaces – some of our heritage projects like
Beeswing House and Alnwick Playhouse, are some of the most
loved buildings in the region.
I am JDDK’s Accredited Conservation Architect, an externally
certi昀椀ed title that validates I have in-depth knowledge and
experience of working with historic buildings. For organisations
looking to transform a heritage building these are the steps we
support clients with to ensure they get the best project outcomes.
Heritage Statement
At the outset of a project involving a historic or listed building or
structure, it is important to produce a Statement of Signi昀椀cance.
This is a process of assessing what is important about the building,
its contents and its setting. It describes the building as a whole and
its various individual elements, why it is valuable, whether that is
aesthetic, communal, historic, or evidential value, and how that
contributes to the overall character and signi昀椀cance of the building.
This Statement of Signi昀椀cance is then used as a starting point for the
project, which can help to inform how we approach change within
the building and develop proposals to meet the client’s brief, and
at the same time protect the heritage signi昀椀cance. The Statement
of Signi昀椀cance is then developed into a Heritage Statement which
includes an assessment of the impact of proposals on the heritage
setting and signi昀椀cance.
An important part of my role as the Conservation Architect is to use
my judgement and experience to assess if any harm will be caused
by the proposals and whether that harm can be outweighed by an
overall public bene昀椀t in the proposals.
The Heritage Statement that is developed is a required document
for Listed Building Consent applications and enables decision
makers and advisory bodies to understand the impact of what you
are proposing on the heritage asset. If done correctly it can help the
approvals process run more ef昀椀ciently.
Alnwick Playhouse, Northumberland
8 Millmount. Winter 2023.