Listed Building Consent
If you wish to demolish a listed building, or alter or extend it in a way that affects its character or appearance as a building of special architectural or historic interest, you must first apply for listed building consent. There are no hard and fast rules about what is and is not a permissible alteration to a listed building, since the architectural interest of each building is different.
Before applying for listed building consent, owners of listed buildings are strongly recommended to seek informal advice from the District Historic Buildings Officer before making an application for listed building consent. Pre-application advice very often involves a negotiation between the Officer and the owner of the building, in which a means is sought to protect the architectural or historic interest of the building while allowing it to adapt to new needs and tastes.
Repairs to a Listed Building
If you need to carry out repairs at your listed building, you should consult the District Historic Buildings Officer. Generally speaking, like-for-like repairs do not require listed building consent but other repairs may do so. You should always check before progressing with such works.
How to apply for Listed Building Consent
The relevant application form (see link on the right) should be completed in full, and should accompany a full detailed set of plans. It is crucial that all plans clearly distinguish between the existing and proposed building, with any historical features clearly identified on the submitted plans.
Listed Buildings are defined as heritage assets. All applications for Listed Building Consent should be accompanied by a Design and Access Statement, which should include a detailed Heritage Assessment. In accordance with Paragraph 128 of the National Planning Policy Framework, applicants are required to describe the significance of any heritage assets affected, including any contribution made by their setting. The level of detail should be sufficient to understand the potential impact of the proposal on the significance. As a minimum, the relevant Historic Environmental Record should be consulted and the heritage assets assessed using appropriate expertise where necessary. Applicants should also have regard to the relevant information within the Buckinghamshire Historic Environmental Record and the listing which can be viewed on Heritage Gateway.
There is no fee for applications for listed building consent. However, if the application accompanies a planning application, a fee will still be payable for that application.
