What Are The Expectations For An Owner Of A Listed Building?
If you own a listed building, you are the custodian of a vital part of British heritage, and this means that not only are there some specialist needs when it comes to restoration and repairs, but there are some additional expectations and legal obligations for the owner.
Not only are there older construction materials and techniques to look after, but if you want to modernise the building to help meet more stringent insulation, fire safety and energy efficiency regulations, the work can be more complex and thus more costly due to the need for specialists.
The best way to plan the work and understand what you can and cannot do with your listed building to preserve its character is to understand your legal obligations and general expectations.
With that in mind, here are some of the bigger consequences of owning a listed building that you should keep in mind when you are either thinking of buying one or have inherited one.
Keeping Building Carefully Maintained
Every homeowner wants to make sure that their building keeps looking great, is well-maintained and any lingering issues are rectified before they become serious problems. However, this is not just an expectation with a listed building but can become a legal obligation.
The law is complex when it comes to the upkeep of listed buildings; as UK government guidance suggests, it is not a specific duty of care, but local authorities have the power to require the owner of a building to carry out works in cases where they are at risk of losing their historic character.
As Historic England notes in guidance regarding the use of the various enforcement powers the local government has, this is not a statutory obligation on the part of an owner.
Instead, it is used when, in the belief of the relevant local authority, Historic England or the Home Secretary, the building is being allowed to deteriorate and it is having an effect on preservation efforts or the local area.
The three main ways in which this is enforced are:
Repairs notices, when specific repairs are considered necessary to preserve the building and can lead to a compulsory purchase as a last resort if no reasonable steps are being made to protect the building.
Urgent works order, where a building that is empty or the unused part of a partially occupied listed building has emergency repairs carried out, charging the owner of the building reasonable costs for doing so.
A Section 215 Order, a broader part of the Town & Country Planning Act 1990 that requires an owner to remedy the condition of their land within 28 days if the condition of a listed building affects surrounding amenities in the view of the relevant local authority.
Additional Consent And Permission
When you own a listed building and want to make alterations and expansions to make the space suit your needs better or enable the building to be used for purposes outside of its initial intention, it is vital to check if you need to acquire not only planning permission but also listed building consent.
Checking with your local planning authority for planning permission is important regardless to ensure that any works would fit with the restraints of permitted development rights, but if you want to alter a listed building in a way that might affect its historic character, you may need listed building consent.
Typically, the conservation officer of your LPA is the first person to ask regarding consent, as consent is typically only required when adjusting elements that are considered of historic or architectural interest, and this can sometimes require a more detailed examination of the plans.
Whilst you should always ask for permission rather than forgiveness with any work that might not be considered permitted development, unauthorised work is a criminal offence that can lead to fines or even prison sentences, depending on the scale and wilful nature of the offence.
Some listed buildings are in an area under an Article 4 direction, where existing permitted development rights may be restricted in order to meet the conservation goals of a particular area. As ever, your local planning authority is the first port of call if you are unsure.
Using Appropriate Materials
When undertaking restorations, repairs or alterations, you will need to use appropriate materials that are sympathetic to the original building to avoid long-term damage and harm to the underlying structure of the building.
The most common example of this is historic stone buildings, which must be restored using breathable materials such as lime mortar rather than concrete in order to reduce the risk of damp, mould and other structural damage.