cornwall & scilly urban survey

HELSTON

Cornwall & Scilly Urban Survey

Historic characterisation for regeneration

CORNWALL ARCHAEOLOGICAL

UNIT

Objective One is part-funded by the European Union

Stephanie Russell

December 2002

Report No 2002R071

CORNWALL ARCHAEOLOGICAL UNIT

Historic Environment Service, Planning Transportation and Estates,

Cornwall County Council

Kennall Building, Old County Hall, Station Road, Truro, Cornwall, TR1 3AY

tel (01872) 323603 fax (01872) 323811 E-mail [email protected]

HELSTON

Cornwall and Scilly Urban Survey

Historic characterisation for regeneration

December 2002 2

Cover illustration Helston: the historic core from the south west, 2001 (CCC Historic Environment Section, ACS 5977)

© Cornwall County Council 2002 No part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior permission of the publisher.

Acknowledgements This report was produced as part of the Cornwall & Scilly Urban Survey project (CSUS), funded by English Heritage and the Objective One Partnership for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly (European Regional Development Fund). Peter Beacham (Head of Urban Strategies and Listing), Roger M Thomas (Head of Urban Archaeology) and Ian Morrison (Ancient Monuments Inspector for Devon, Cornwall and Isles of Scilly) liased with the project team for English Heritage and provided valuable advice, guidance and support.

Nick Cahill (The Cahill Partnership) acted as Conservation Supervisor to the project, providing vital support with the characterisation methodology and advice on the interpretation of individual settlements. Georgina McLaren (Cornwall Enterprise) performed an equally significant advisory role on all aspects of economic regeneration. Additional help has been given by Andrew Richards, Kerrier District Council Conservation Officer and Helston Conservation Society who kindly gave permission to use their photographs. Thanks also go to Helston Town Council, who provided comments on the consultation draft.

The Urban Survey Officers for CSUS are Kate Newell and Stephanie Russell; Stephanie Russell was the lead officer for the assessment of Helston. Bryn Perry-Tapper is the project’s GIS/SMR Supervisor and has played an important role in developing the GIS, SMR and Web elements of the project and training the team. CSUS Project Manager is Graeme Kirkham and Jeanette Ratcliffe is the Project Co-ordinator within Cornwall County Council Environment and Heritage Service.

December 2002 3

Contents Summary ..................................................................................................................... 5

Historical development ............................................................................................................... 5

Historic settlement character...................................................................................................... 6

Character-based principles for regeneration ............................................................................ 6

Character areas and regeneration opportunities ...................................................................... 6

1. Introduction............................................................................................................. 9

Regeneration and the historic towns of Cornwall and Scilly ................................................. 9

Characterisation and regeneration ............................................................................................. 9

Cornwall and Scilly Urban Survey ........................................................................................... 10

CSUS reports .............................................................................................................................. 10

Extent of the study area ............................................................................................................ 11

2. Helston: the context...............................................................................................12

The regeneration context .......................................................................................................... 12

Landscape and setting ............................................................................................................... 13

Physical topography of the urban area.................................................................................... 14

Historic environment designations.......................................................................................... 14

3. Historical and topographical development ...........................................................15

Origins ......................................................................................................................................... 15

Medieval planned town ............................................................................................................. 15

Market and tin town .................................................................................................................. 17

‘A large and populous town’..................................................................................................... 18

Boom and decline ...................................................................................................................... 18

The 20th century.......................................................................................................................... 20

Into the 21st century................................................................................................................... 20

4. Archaeological potential ........................................................................................21

Indicators of archaeological potential ..................................................................................... 21

5. Present settlement character................................................................................. 23

Understanding character ........................................................................................................... 23

Overall settlement character..................................................................................................... 23

The character areas .................................................................................................................... 28

Areas outside the historic core................................................................................................. 40

6. Heritage-led regeneration and positive management

of the historic environment...............................................................................41

Character-based principles for regeneration .......................................................................... 41

Regeneration and the historic environment: key themes and issues .................................. 42

Opportunities in the different character areas ....................................................................... 46

December 2002 4

Figures (located at back of report) 1. Location and landscape setting.

2. OS 2nd edition 1:2500 (c 1907)

3. Historical development

4. Historic topography

5. Surviving historic components

6. Archaeological potential

7. Character areas

Character area summary sheets 1 - 7

Abbreviations CCC Cornwall County Council

CSUS Cornwall & Scilly Urban Survey

DCMS Department for Culture, Media and Sport

DTLR Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions

GIS Geographical Information Systems

KDC Kerrier District Council

LOTS Living Over The Shop scheme SWERDA South West of England Regional Development Agency

THI Townscape Heritage Initiative

Cornwall and Scilly Urban Survey Helston

December 2002 Summary 5

Summary

Cornwall & Scilly Urban Survey

The Cornwall & Scilly Urban Survey is a pioneering initiative aimed at harnessing the quality and distinctive character of the historic environment to successful and sustainable regeneration. The Survey is investigating 19 historic towns and creating for each an information base and character assessment which will contribute positively to regeneration planning. The project is based within Cornwall County Council’s Historic Environment Service and funded by English Heritage, Objective 1 and South West RDA.

Helston

Helston is a busy medium-sized market town in west Cornwall possessing an historic urban environment of regional, if not national importance. The District and Town councils are currently participating in the Market and Coastal Towns Initiative and have been granted finding for a Townscape Heritage Initiative scheme.

Historical development

The urban origins of Helston date from the construction of a 12-13th century castle on a site overlooking a crossing point on the River Cober. A planned settlement was built immediately to the east of the castle and the new town became one of the most important medieval markets in Cornwall. The rise of the tin industry in the area gave the town an additional importance and it was a stannary town from the early 14th century.

Helston’s role as a market and service centre for a wide agricultural and industrial hinterland persisted into the post medieval period and the town grew substantially along the major routes leading to the associated port at Gweek, and the mineral region to the north east. It also developed as a middle class residential centre. Its prosperity over a long period resulted in a large number of fine buildings, particularly of the 18th and 19th centuries, and high quality streetscape details. The decline of mining after the 1860s led to a slow down of the area’s economy that contributed to the high rate of survival of the historic built environment in the central portion of the town.

In the 20th century Helston maintained its role as a market centre for the surrounding area but experienced little major change until after WW2. Development of RNAS Culdrose brought new employment and economic impetus to the town and there has been a parallel rise in public and private sector housing: the size of the built-up area increased fourfold during the second half of the century.

In the 21st century, the quality of Helston’s historic environment is a major asset for regeneration, both in terms of the potential it offers for developing cultural and special interest tourism and as a fundamental element underpinning the town’s unique and distinctive identity and local ‘pride of place’.

Key elements of Helston’s historical physical development that have influenced its present form and topography are shown in figure 4 and summarised below:

• Early Christian enclosure and settlement focus around a later parish church

• Medieval castle site (now the site of the bowling green)

• Medieval and late medieval Market Place and burgage plot development (along Coinagehall Street)



• Medieval hospital and lazar house (at St John’s )

• Late medieval and post medieval sites infilling and expansion (along Wendron Street and Meneage Street)

• Post-medieval fair site and Coronation lake

• Early medieval – 18th century east-west and north south road axes and the 19th century railway station at the east end of Wendron Street.

Historic settlement character

Helston’s history has created a town with a strong, locally distinctive character. Major elements of this include:

• strong historic plan, with the major streets and their burgage plots and alleyways based on the same layout as that of the planned medieval settlement,

• apparent cruciform plan form comprised by four converging self-contained individual distinct streets rather than two crossing highways,

• tight urban grain and strong sense of enclosure within urban core

• network of opes, lanes and alleyways running back from and between main streets,

• modern gateways to town now detached from historic core,

• striking completeness of the largely 18th and 19th century historic townscape, both as surviving buildings (domestic, public and institutional) and streetscape detail including kennals, paving, railings and other historic streetscape features;

• general homogeneity of building styles and materials (overwhelmingly stone), but with much subtle variation in the use of materials and detailing,

• sloping topography and valley-side location, creating spectacular views across the town and out to and in from open countryside to the west and south west;

Character-based principles for regeneration

A strategy for Helston’s regeneration soundly based on characterisation should incorporate the following elements as fundamental themes.

• Understanding the contribution made by the topography and landscape setting of historic environment.

• Enhancement of the historic built environment should underpin any new build and public realm improvements.

• Repairing ‘tears’ in the urban fabric in order to reinstate historic urban character

• Using local materials, construction techniques and labour

• Enhancing approaches to the town

• Promoting Helston as one of Cornwall’s finest towns.

Character areas and regeneration opportunities

Eight distinct Character Areas have been identified within the historic urban core. These are differentiated by their varied historic origins, functions and resultant urban topography, the processes of change which have affected each subsequently and the extent to which these elements and processes are evident in the current townscape.

These character areas are a means of understanding the past and the present. In turn, that understanding provides the basis for a positive approach to planning future change which will maintain and



reinforce the historic character and individuality of each area - sustainable local distinctiveness.

A summary of the attributes for each character area, with key themes for heritage-led regeneration are presented below.



1. Church Street and Cross Street. The finest area in Helston in terms of the status and quality of its buildings and overall sense of place. Predominantly residential, it has an atmosphere of elegance and quiet seclusion, contrasting sharply with the bustle of the nearby centre. Additionally, much of the area has a sense of greenery and green spaces which is absent in most of the town

• Manage and maintain streetscape detail • Safeguard ‘green’ element • Identify additional uses for The Willows • Repair ‘tears’ in urban fabric

2. Coinagehall Street. Historically the major east-west axis of the planned medieval town, retains a sense of being the heart of the settlement. The topography of the former open market - its scale, the slight curve and marked slope of the street, together with the quality of many of the enclosing buildings - combine to create a striking urban space. There are memorable views along the street and out to open countryside.

• Repair ‘tears in urban fabric’ – redevelopment and repairs

• New uses for underused and vacant buildings • Repair/reinstate streetscape details • Enhance Bowling Green area • Review Conservation Area • Reduce vehicle – pedestrian conflict, congestion

3. Central market area. The physical heart of the historic town, centred on the staggered cross roads between its primary streets and including the steeply sloping triangular Market Place at the junction of Church and Coinagehall Streets. It is a busy central node for both pedestrian and vehicle traffic The Guildhall is an important visual focus within the town but the quality of architecture and materials throughout the area is very high. Tall buildings and narrow streets and pavements create a strong sense of enclosure.

• Reduce vehicle – pedestrian conflict. • Rationalise street furniture to enhance views to

church. • Ensure high quality and appropriate design in any

development of United Methodist chapel site.

4. Five Wells area. Historically a focus for industry and services, located on the valley side below the area of the planned medieval settlement. It is predominantly laid out along narrow and sinuous streets and lanes with high bounding walls and projects an enclosed, secluded and ‘secret’ air.

• Continue project to refurbish wells • Repair and new use for historic building and yard in

Brewery Lane • Repair programme for boundary walls

5. Post medieval urban expansion – Wendron Street. Part of the medieval east-west axis, this is a predominantly residential and, as it proceeds away from the centre of the town, suburban area. Only the portion close to the centre shares in the strong urban character of the historic core of the town. Buildings are generally plain in form and local stone is dominant in the colour and texture of the streetscape.

• Improve Flora Centre frontage • Identify new uses for Passmore Edwards centre • Review Conservation Area • Minor streetscape improvements • Sensitive redevelopment of Grammar school site

6. Post medieval urban expansion – Meneage Street. Historic route south to the Lizard peninsula, this is now the busy commercial focus of the town. The area has many good buildings and historic shopfronts in a diversity of forms and styles. Narrow pavements and carriageway, on-street parking and the majority of buildings set hard to the pavement edge, combine to create a strong sense of enclosure, except where later 20th century traffic engineering has opened up areas around road junctions.

• Traffic reduction • Repair and reinstatement scheme for historic buildings

and shopfronts • Review Conservation Area • Reduce street clutter & re-assert historic axis

7. Post Medieval expansion – Meneage Road Continuation of the historic route south to the Lizard peninsular, this area is increasingly suburban with grassed front gardens fronting the pavements, large stone built detached and semi-detached houses set in their own gardens. The road and pavements are wide and spacious and there is plenty of green space.

• Maintain the green and open character • Reduce street clutter

8. River valley and St John’s. Lies across the major route from the west and includes what was originally a medieval suburb around a crossing point on the Cober. Much of it is low-lying, along the valley floor, and portions have served as the site for Helston’s fairs and cattle markets, industrial activities and the town’s major public open space

• Create regeneration masterplan for area. • Enhance gateway facilities • Review Conservation Area boundary.


December 2002 Introduction 9

1. Introduction

Regeneration and the historic towns of Cornwall and Scilly

In July 1999 Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly were designated as an Objective 1 area, bringing potential investment from European funds of more than £300m over the nine-year spending period. Economic regeneration schemes and development projects within the region’s towns are likely to form a major element of the Objective 1 Programme.

Regeneration on this scale offers an unparalleled opportunity for contemporary contributions in urban design and architecture to the built environment of Cornwall and Scilly’s towns. At the same time, the Objective 1 programme emphasises environmental sustainability (including the historic environment) and regional distinctiveness as key considerations in regeneration planning. The process of change launched by current regeneration initiatives could, if not carefully managed, have a negative impact on the historic environment and the unique character and sense of place of each of these settlements. The pressure to achieve rapid change could in itself result in severe erosion and dilution of their individuality and particular distinctiveness and, at worst, their transformation into ‘anywhere’ towns.

It is clear from recent research that a high quality historic urban environment and the distinctiveness and sense of place integral to it are themselves primary assets in promoting regeneration. The effect may be direct, through heritage tourism, for example, but there is a more powerful and decisive emotional and perceptual impact in prompting a strong sense of identity and pride of place which in turn creates a positive and confident climate for investment and growth.

This synergy between the historic environment and economic regeneration was recognised and strongly advocated in the Power of Place review of policies on the historic environment carried out by English Heritage in 2000, and its value clearly highlighted in the government’s response, The Historic Environment: A Force for the Future (2001). The tool by which the two may be linked to create a framework for sustainable development in historic settlements is characterisation.

Characterisation and regeneration

‘The government . . . wants to see more regeneration projects, large and small, going forward on the basis of a clear understanding of the existing historic environment, how this has developed over time and how it can be used creatively to meet contemporary needs.’

(DCMS/DTLR, The Historic Environment: A Force for the Future

(2001), 5.2)

Characterisation is in essence the creation of a comprehensive knowledge base on the historic environment. This includes what is known of the settlement’s historic development and the resulting urban topography - the basic components which have contributed to the physical shaping of the historic settlement such as Market Places, church enclosures, turnpike roads, railways, etc. – together with an overview of the surviving historic fabric, distinctive architectural forms, materials and treatments and the significant elements of town and streetscapes.

Characterisation may also provide the basis for assessing the potential for buried and standing archaeological remains and their likely significance, reducing uncertainty for regeneration interests by providing an indication of potential constraints. Overall, the process offers a means of understanding



the diverse range of factors that combine to create ‘distinctiveness’ and ‘sense of place’.

Characterisation is also the means whereby the historic environment can itself provide an inspirational matrix for regeneration. It highlights both the tears in the urban fabric wrought by a lack of care in the past and offers an indication of appropriate approaches to their repair. It emphasises the historic continuum, which provides the context for current change and into which the regeneration measures of the present must fit if the distinctive and special qualities of each historic town are to be maintained and enhanced.

Characterisation is not intended to encourage or provide a basis for imitation or pastiche: rather, it offers a sound basis on which the 21st century can make its own distinct and high-quality contribution to places of enduring value.

Cornwall and Scilly Urban Survey

The Cornwall & Scilly Urban Survey (CSUS) was set up – funded by both English Heritage and the Objective One Partnership for Cornwall and Scilly (European Regional Development Fund) – as a key contributor to regeneration in the region. The project is investigating 18 historic towns and creating for each the information base and character assessment which will provide a framework for sustainable action within these historic settlements.

These towns have been identified, in consultation with planning, conservation and economic regeneration officers within the seven district, borough and unitary authorities in the region, as those that are likely to be the focus for regeneration.

The ‘target’ settlements are:

Penzance St Ives

Hayle Helston

Camborne Redruth

Falmouth Penryn

Truro Newquay

St Austell Bodmin

Camelford Launceston

Liskeard Saltash

Torpoint Hugh Town (St Mary’s, Isles of Scilly)

CSUS is a pioneering initiative aimed directly at cutting across the boundary that traditionally divides conservation and economic development. Nationally, it is the first such project carrying out a characterisation-based assessment of the historic urban environment specifically to inform and support a regional economic regeneration programme. Future regeneration initiatives in other historic settlements, both in Cornwall and further afield, will benefit from the new approach developed by the project.

CSUS reports

CSUS reports present the major findings and recommendations arising from the project’s work on each town. They are complemented by digital data recorded using ArcView Geographical Information System (GIS) software, and together the two sources provide comprehensive information on historic development, urban topography, significant components of the historic environment, archaeological potential and historic character.

Importantly, the reports also identify opportunities for heritage-led regeneration and positive management of the historic environment. However, they are not intended to be prescriptive



design guides, but rather they should be used by architects, town-planners, and regeneration officers to inform future development and planning strategies.

The reports and associated digital resources are shared with the appropriate local authorities; economic regeneration, planning and conservation officers therefore have immediate access to the detailed information generated by the project. Additional information is held in the Cornwall and Scilly Historic Environment Record, maintained by the Historic Environment Section of Cornwall County Council.

Public access to the report and to the associated mapping is available via the project’s website - www.historic-cornwall.org.uk - or by appointment at the offices of Cornwall County Council’s Historic Environment Section, Old County Hall, Truro.

Extent of the study area

The history and historic development of each town are investigated and mapped for the whole of the area defined for the settlement by the current Local Plan. However, the detailed characterisation and analysis of urban topography, which together form the primary elements of the study, are closely focused on the historic urban extent of the settlement. For the purposes of the project this area is defined as that which is recognisably ‘urban’ in character on the 2nd edition Ordnance Survey 1:2500 map, c. 1907 (Figs. 1 and 2). Outlying rural settlements which have been incorporated into the modern urban area since 1907 are intentionally excluded.

The historic core of Helston, looking west up Wendron Street and Coinagehall street towards the bowling green and St John’s area beyond


December 2002 Context 12

2. Helston: the context

Helston is a medium-sized market town in southwest Cornwall with an estimated current population of between 8,000 and 9,000. The town is particularly noted for its fine 18th and 19th century buildings and high quality streetscapes, and for the Flora Day celebrations held in May each year. It lies within the bounds of Kerrier District Council (KDC) and is situated approximately 3 km inland from the east side of Mount’s Bay (Fig 1).

Located on a west - east road-route across south-west Cornwall, linking the towns of Penzance and Falmouth, Helston also lies at the northern end of the route that historically provided access to the town’s port in Gweek and the immediate hinterland towards Meneage. Routes running north and east link it to the original parish church at Wendron and the historic central mining district of Cornwall around Camborne and Redruth. The town has served as the major market and service centre for the surrounding area. The nearest mainline rail station is 17.5 km distant at Redruth; an integrated ‘branch line’ bus link between Helston and Redruth rail station was established in 1999.

The town has expanded considerably since World War 2, through both public and private housing provision, and remains one of the fastest growing population centres in Cornwall. The Local Plan foresees substantial continuing housing growth, with the population growing to more than 10,000 by 2011. The KDC Annual Performance Update for 2002-3 notes the ‘desperate need’ for more social housing in the district; the authority is committed to locating at least 40 per cent of all new housing and 60 per cent of Housing Association development on brownfield sites.

The Royal Navy air station at Culdrose, immediately to the south of the town, is

much the largest employer in the area (c 700 civilian jobs), with a contribution to the local economy estimated at almost £60m in 1995/96. It is recognised that any significant future reduction in military activity at the base would have serious consequences for Helston and its wider hinterland. Unemployment rates in the Helston travel to work area are consistently higher than for Camborne-Redruth, for Cornwall and the region as a whole. There is some demand for additional workspaces in the Helston area and the Local Plan and IAP foresee additional provision of high-quality light industrial space on the east side of the settlement area around Clodgey Lane, under the auspices of SWERDA. However, it is perceived that there is little prospect of attracting major new industrial employment enterprises to the area because of its relatively remote location and poor transport links.

The regeneration context

Helston is noted in the Kerrier District Local Plan as a focus for continuing housing development, with around 830 new houses envisaged during the period to 2011, and for limited industrial workspace expansion based on sites at Clodgey Lane South and North. In addition, KDC’s current Corporate Plan emphasises the authority’s commitment to encourage regeneration based on economic growth in the area’s main towns, including Helston, ‘especially by targeting vacant and derelict sites’. The town is identified as one of Cornwall’s main settlements in the Objective 1 Single Programming Document, acknowledging that although economic activity rates are significantly higher than the Cornwall average, unemployment rates are also high.

In 1999 CCC and KDC produced a joint Integrated Rural Strategy for Helston and the Lizard, based on extensive



community consultation. This provided much of the background for the South Kerrier IAP, centred on Helston, published in 2000. The IAP identifies specific measures and derived activities, potentially eligible for Objective 1 support, which focus on or are strongly associated with local distinctiveness, character, heritage-based regeneration and improving the public product, particularly in broad environmental terms. Examples include support for restoration of historic buildings and features that provide locally distinctive character elements in town enhancement or regeneration schemes, improved signing and interpretation and public realm improvements.

Helston has been designated one of nine pilot towns in the Market and Coastal Towns Initiative run jointly by the Countryside Agency and SWERDA. It has been granted initial funding of £50,000 to commission a regeneration masterplan, to be piloted by a Market Town Forum established with representation from local authorities and a range of agencies and community organisations. KDC were awarded Townscape Heritage Initiative funding, the initiative commencing in 2003. The THI will also be co-ordinated through the Forum, ‘to ensure that the historic fabric is conserved while the commercial opportunities are fully realised’.

Helston Development Trust is a charity formed in 1998 to focus on local regeneration and social needs. It won a BT Better Towns award to enhance the Flora Centre based in the former Baptist Chapel on Wendron Street. The Flora Centre initiative is aimed at providing premises for a commercial cinema and café, a gym and start-up business units.

Local community interest in the historic environment is reflected in the successful Helston Folk Museum, established in 1949, the town’s active Helston Conservation Society (affiliated to the Civic Trust), which has initiated

conservation projects including one based on the town’s well, and its Old Cornwall Society. Helston has an interesting and informative town trail leaflet produced by Helston Town Council, and KDC produces a useful ‘Discover Helston’ leaflet. Both are widely distributed locally, free of charge.

Helston Town trail sign at the well on Five Wells Lane

Landscape and setting

Helston lies on the east side of the River Cober, approximately 4 km upstream from where it joins the sea. Below the town, the lower end of the valley is filled by Loe Pool, the largest body of fresh water in Cornwall, enclosed by Loe Bar, a shingle bank thrown up by marine action across the mouth of the valley.

The historic settlement lies on a west-facing hillside, astride a minor side valley of the Cober. The probable site of the reputed medieval castle lies in a commanding position on a spur. The church is prominently situated on higher ground to the north.

The geology of the wider Helston area (reflected in the materials utilised in many



of the town’s buildings), is predominantly killas and granite, with areas of elvan to the north and north-west. The surrounding landscape is of gently undulating hills and valleys, mainly in agricultural use. Much of the area around the town is identified by the Cornwall Historic Landscape Assessment as Anciently Enclosed Land (primarily medieval), but there are also areas of Recently Enclosed Land to the north west and south east, mostly representing heath or moorland improved in the 19th century; Culdrose airfield occupies a large area of former heathland to the south east. In the medieval and post-medieval periods a wide arc of countryside around the town, from northeast to west, was dominated by mining and mining-related activity.

Physical topography of the urban area

The valley-side location of the historic settlement adds substantially to the character and visual interest on the town. Most of the principal streets are laid out on a slope, creating striking roofscapes and offering views and glimpses within, across and out of the settlement. The open and wooded countryside on the west side of the Cober valley contributes significantly to Helston’s wider setting; higher ground to the south is now mostly built on but its presence provides some sense of enclosure in this direction and emphasises the importance of open views to the west. On Coinagehall Street and the northern part of Church Street in particular, buildings are ‘stepped’ to follow the slope, the visibility of roofs and gables adds interest to the townscape. The prominent siting of the church to the north of the side valley to the Cober provides an additional visual focus from the

centre of the town and from a wider area: its tower can be clearly seen from Loe Bar.

Historic environment designations

The current historic environment designations in the pre-1907 historic urban core of Helston are shown on figure 5 and listed below.

• Three Scheduled Ancient Monuments.

• 211 Listed Buildings.

• A Conservation Area incorporating much of the core of the historic town.

• Article 4 (1) direction protecting widows doors roofs and chimneys to all elevations.

Helston is designated a Historic Settlement in the Cornwall County Council Structure Plan.

Important view along Coinagehall Street to the surrounding countryside


December 2002 Historical and Topographical Development 15

3. Historical and topographical development

Helston’s historic core is clearly a planned medieval town, based on the castle although there may have been earlier settlements in the vicinity of the Church and the St John’s area. The town’s later development as a market centre for a wide agricultural hinterland and for the neighbouring industrial region, parallels that of other important Cornish towns; for example, Truro, St Austell and Redruth. Helston’s prosperity manifests itself in a range of fine buildings and streetscape elements, which it is hard to match elsewhere in Cornwall. In the later 20th century rapid residential expansion has taken place around its periphery, yet much of the quality of its historic core has been retained.

The following text should be read in conjunction with figures 3 and 4, which show the historic development of Helston and the extent to which key elements of this development are reflected in its present form and urban topography.

Origins

There are no confirmed prehistoric sites within the historic urban extent of Helston, but settlement of the late prehistoric and Roman period is attested in the area in the form of at least nine confirmed or suspected defended farmsteads (rounds) within a 3km radius of the town.

The name Helston is first recorded in 1086 as henlistone; this incorporates the Cornish elements hen and lys, interpreted as ancient or disused ‘court’ (ie, administrative centre) or perhaps ruins, with the Old English suffix tun,

‘village’ or ‘town’. This appears to indicate settlement and centre of administration in the vicinity of a prehistoric or early medieval site and there are hints that this may have been located in the area of the church. The curvilinear eastern boundary of the churchyard certainly resembles those of rounds and early Christian lann enclosures and it is possible that there was an initial settlement around the church site; the royal status of the estate at Domesday emphasises that it may have been a place of some significance at an earlier date.

Medieval planned town

Helston was recorded for Domesday as one of the larger manors in Cornwall. It had land for 40 ploughs, very substantial areas of pasture and woodland and a population for taxation purposes of 30 villagers, 40 ‘alemen’ and 20 smallholders. The reference to alemen, almost unique in Domesday, has been interpreted as referring to brewers and thus as implying that a town was already in existence before the end of the 11th century; the term may, however, simply indicate individuals paying tax in the form of ale. If not already urban at this time, however, Helston certainly become so during the following century, receiving its first charter in1201.

Helston was part of Wendron parish until separated as a parish in its own right in 1865, but a chapel was in existence before 1208, located on higher ground north of the apparent medieval core of the town, alongside what was probably an established route from the north east to a crossing point on the River Cober. Two medieval religious foundations grew up nearby. In 1260 a Hospital of St John serving pilgrims en route to St Michael’s Mount was recorded close to a bridge across the river and in the early 14th century a lazar (leper) house dedicated to



St Mary Magdalene was also recorded in the vicinity.

A castle or fortified manor of the 12th or 13th century is located by tradition at the Bowling Green, at the west end of Coinagehall Street, on a prominent spur overlooking the Cober (Fig 4). By the later 15th century the castle was in ruins in and during the 16th century all remains disappeared. A chapel of St Mary existed before 1283, possibly sited immediately outside the castle gates (close to the present junction between Coinagehall Street and Almshouse Hill); this was also the location of a later coinage hall, which may itself have reused the chapel building.

Bowling Green / Castle site

The historical topography of the town strongly suggests that the present core originated as a planned medieval settlement based on the castle (Fig 4). The triangular space formed by the west end of Coinagehall Street, with a chapel formerly sited on or within it, is likely to derive from an early Market Place and settlement immediately outside the castle gates. Coinagehall Street, a long, wide ‘cigar-shaped’ space flanked by burgage strips, was a planned extension from this early core. The casual find of a silver penny of c 1200 from the rear of 30 Coinagehall Street (the present Post Office) may give an indication of the date around which the new urban settlement was established. Presumably this superseded the possible earlier focus around the site of the present church

some 300m to the north. The physical separation of the church from the core of the town certainly hints that the two centres had different origins and the marked dog-leg in the course of Church Street, not otherwise explained by the topography of the town, may have been the result of linking the east end of the ‘new’ Coinagehall Street to an earlier track running south from the church.

In addition to its market functions, the tin industry was important to the town from an early stage. In 1302 Helston’s seaborne trade was recorded as being conducted through the port of Gweek, 5km to the east on the Helford River, over which the town had jurisdiction (its gallows were sited there in the early 14th century) and Helston merchants also obtained the privilege of free trade at any market other than London In 1305 Helston became one of Cornwall’s Stannary Towns (for Penwith and Kerrier Stannary) and the mayors of Helston played a part in the election of the Stannary Parliament. In 1492 the town joined Truro and Bodmin as a Coinage Town for taxation of tin. Helston played a significant part in the 1497 Rebellion, one of the issues for which was the taxation of privileged tinners in the area.

Daniel Defoe, writing in the early 18th century, appears to state that ships were then able to trade up the Cober to Helston; this would seem to be the origin of other documentary sources claiming a port for the town in the historic period. However, Loe Pool is referred to in a document of 1302, implying the existence of Loe Bar from at least this date, if not much earlier, and thus precluding the passage of shipping up the Cober. There is no known archaeological evidence for the existence of a port at Helston and there is no primary evidence to support Defoe’s account.



Market and tin town

Helston became a free borough, controlled by its burgesses and distinct from the large rural manor owned by the Duchy of Cornwall, during the first half of the 16th century; Leland, c 1540, noted it as having ‘a mayor and privileges’. Carew found it ‘a well seated and peopled town’ in c 1600, and a grammar school was established there during this period. Its continuing prosperity can be linked to its functions as a market – the date stone for a market house of 1576 survives – and service centre for a large agricultural and industrial hinterland. The 16th century Godolphin town house in Coinagehall Street, now the Angel Inn, is evidence of the town’s close links with the tinning area to the west dominated by the Godolphin family.

The Angel Hotel, Coinagehall Street

Historically there had always been a strong connection between the Church and the maintenance of the Cornish Language. During the 16th century Helston played a major part in the Prayer Book rebellion. In 1548 William Body was killed following a riot against the removal of religious icons and the introduction of the English language prayer book, a language foreign and little understood in these parts at this time. Most spoke Cornish and followed church services in Latin.

In the late 17th century, Wendron parish was one of only two in Cornwall to host

three active tin smelting operations. This period was a period of significant expansion beyond the town’s medieval extent. A datestone of 1691 in the ope between 77 and 77a Meneage Street suggests that the settlement had by that date already extended almost 300m south of Coinagehall Street. The few buildings in Meneage Street that are set back from the dominant pavement-edge building line represent earlier properties incorporated as the settlement expanded south along the road. Cross Street also has buildings with 17th and early 18th century origins and is likely to have been laid out on the hillside north of the major medieval axis of the town during this period.

Cross Street

The substantial well in Five Wells Lane dated 1703 represents a significant investment in the urban infrastructure.

The strength of the urban economy is hinted at in Pococke’s comment of 1750 that ‘they have shops in the town to supply the neighbouring country’. The importance of local communications in the development of the town is emphasised by the strongly cruciform nature of its topography (growth from its initial ‘planned’ form was clearly for the most part concentrated along the routes approaching the town), and was enhanced by the later Turnpike road from Penzance to Helston and on to the east.



‘A large and populous town’

Much of Helston’s present character derives from the high standards of design and materials established for buildings in its principal streets during the 18th century. The surviving townhouses of this period demonstrate the growing importance of the town for commercial and professional interests: an anonymous traveller described it in 1795 as a ‘large and populous town . . . a number of large and good houses, and many gentry live here on their fortunes’. Stockdale described it in 1824 as ‘large and respectable’.

Much of the significant building of this period was on the north side of the town. A new church, designed by Thomas Edwards of Greenwich based on designs by Hawksmoor and Gibbs, was built on the site of the earlier foundation and consecrated in 1761.

Church Street Several large houses were built along Cross Street in the later 18th and early 19th centuries, including two at the east end which were constructed to face across the valley towards the centre of the town over their own large landscaped gardens;

the ‘green heart’ created in this area of Helston continues to contribute substantially to its character. ‘Great Office’, at the east end of the street, was built in 1788 as the Helston Union Bank and later became the administrative centre for the Duke of Leeds’ Godolphin estates. The Mathematical School (now Masonic Hall) was constructed in 1799 on a prominent site at the west end of Cross Street.

Boom and decline

The early decades of the 19th century saw a boom in mining: there were at one point almost 100 active mines in the wider Helston area, including Wheal Vor, claimed as the largest tin mine in the world. Helston’s role as a service centre prompted a rapid rise in population, from 2250 in 1801 to 3500 in 1841. There was, however, little expansion in the overall extent of the town (Fig 3), and much of the increase was accommodated by small-scale infill housing erected on the rear of plots along the principal streets; the early 19th century Chapel Row running off the south side of Coinagehall Street is a surviving example. Trewin (1948) noted an elderly man who recalled Helston’s ‘insanitary and teeming courtlages’ of the early 1850s, when the town housed a population considerably larger than that of the mid 20th century.

The first half of the 19th century also saw major investment in improving public sanitation, which altered the public face of the town. The ingeniously engineered ‘kennels’ in Church Street, Coinagehall Street and formerly Wendron and Meneage Streets probably date to around this time. Old buildings in the middle of the medieval Market Place at the west end of Coinagehall Street – possibly including the remains of the 13th century chapel of St Mary – were demolished c 1830. The elaborate Grylls monument was erected in 1834, creating a landmark



and visual focus, commemorating the role of prominent local businessman in averting a threatened collapse in the mining economy a few years earlier.

The Grylls Monument

In the same decade, much of the probably late medieval central Market Place at the east end of Coinagehall Street was redeveloped; a new Guildhall (1839) replaced the old market hall and a new purpose-built market hall was erected (1837-38). The importance of the market was indicated in a contemporary newspaper report: ‘five years ago it was thought that one van from Meneage [the Lizard] to Helston could not be supported; now five come over Helston Downs on Wednesday and Saturdays’.

The Guildhall, built 1839 in grand ‘classical’ style.

In 1834 a new Grammar School building was constructed at the south west end of Wendron Street, close to the Market Place. In 1836 a large Baptist Chapel was added and in 1837 a small prison was constructed on a site on the south side of Wendron Street on Shute Hill. Between 1838 and 1880 Penrose Road was constructed parallel to Wendron Street.

Population growth slowed from the 1840s, and actually declined from the 1860s, a consequence of the sharp downturn in the fortunes of mining in the district from this period. The high rate of survival of historic fabric in the central area of the town can be attributed in large part to the subsequent stagnation of the area’s economy. The impressive Union workhouse (Meneage Hospital) was built at the south end of Meneage Street in 1855 and the nearby ashlar-fronted Bible Christian chapel was constructed at about the same time. Other landmark buildings date from the later 19th century burst of public building provision in Cornish towns; of particular note are the Methodist Church in Coinagehall Street and the Godolphin Club in Wendron Street, both of c 1888. A Science and Arts School - the Passmore Edwards Institute - was added nearby in Penrose Road in 1898. The railway (a branch-line from Gwinear Road between Camborne and Hayle) reached Helston in 1887, with a terminal built some 750m from the town centre along Wendron Road, and it is conceivable that these prestige structures were to some extent a response to the promise of a change in fortunes. The town certainly continued as an important local market centre and a number of former townhouses in the street appear to have been converted into shops during the later 19th century, representing an expansion in the town’s retailing function; many of the fine shopfronts surviving in Meneage Street date to this period.



The 20th century

Helston maintained its functions as a local market and service centre in the first half of the 20th century, and tanning, which had probably become significant in the town in the latter part of the 19th century, persisted to some extent. Its hinterland contracted, however, with the almost total decline of the mining economy of the areas north and west of the town, and became more focused on the Lizard peninsula. This relatively marginal area was itself significantly affected by the period of agricultural depression that marked much of the inter-war period. From the early 1930s, however, parts of the Lizard became locations for retirement and holiday homes, and Helston itself was noted as a touring centre in pre-WW2 guidebooks.

From the end of WW2, Helston expanded rapidly, spurred initially by construction of RNAS Culdrose immediately south of the town. There were substantial new local authority housing developments close to the historic core during the late 1940s and 1950s and in subsequent decades there has been large scale low density private sector residential building on greenfield sites around the town, particularly to the north and south. Later 20th century housing developments have absorbed outlying hamlets that were previously outside of the urban core. A small industrial and business park has been created on the northern side of the settlement area at Water-Ma-Trout. Helston’s built-up area more than quadrupled in size during the second half of the 20th century and the population rose from 5500 in 1951 to well over 9000 in 1998.

The second half of the 20th century has also seen significant changes in communications. The Helston rail link closed in 1964 (the station buildings have since been removed or converted). The

long-established axes of traffic movement through the core, based on the historic cruciform street plan, altered radically with the construction of a by-pass routing through traffic around the east and south sides of the settlement area. This has certainly delivered major environmental and traffic management benefits, but the by-pass has been a catalyst for suburban and out-of-town commercial development, diverting the economic focus of the town away from the central area The insertion of Trengrouse Way, creating a new access route from the east to the south side of the historic core, has had the effect of re-routing a greater proportion of the traffic entering the town core into Meneage Street.

Into the 21st century

Helston’s historic core now hosts a range of apparently thriving commercial, retail and service functions but also survives as a remarkably well-preserved 18th – 19th century market town, based on a highly visible medieval plan and with relatively little loss. It remains, as Trewin noted in 1948, ‘a handsome town’. In the 21st century, the quality of its historic environment is undoubtedly a major asset for regeneration, both in terms of the significant potential for developing future cultural and special interest tourism and as a fundamental element underpinning the town’s unique and distinctive identity and local ‘pride of place’.


December 2002 Archaeological Potential 21

4. Archaeological potential

Helston’s archaeology is a largely unknown resource: no archaeological interventions (excavations, watching briefs, evaluations, etc) are recorded within the historic core of the town and very few chance-finds have been reported.

Nevertheless, archaeology is potentially a rich asset. The documentary record is silent on many aspects of the town’s development and archaeology is almost certainly the only way in which certain key aspects of its historic development and character can be better understood. Archaeology can also make a contribution in both cultural and economic terms: remains of the past can have significant potential for education, tourism and leisure, as well as in terms of local pride and sense of place.

The term ‘archaeology’ does not refer solely to buried remains. These are of undoubted importance, but in the urban context examination of the historical sequences embodied in standing buildings and other structures can also be extremely valuable: a building survey is likely to yield significant new information. Opportunities for investigation and recording should be sought when buildings are refurbished or undergo substantial alteration. Figure 5 indicates the survival of historic fabric, defined here as standing pre-1907 structures, which may offer potential for archaeological investigation.

Further documentary research is also likely to yield valuable data. This area of study, together with a building survey, could provide a challenging and worthwhile avenue for involvement by local groups wishing to investigate aspects of their heritage.

Archaeological remains are an important and non-renewable resource and as such

are protected by national legislation and local planning policy. One component of future investigation of both buried archaeological remains and standing buildings could be through more extensive targeted implementation of Planning Policy Guidance notes (PPG) 15 and 16 as part of the development control process.

Indicators of archaeological potential

Figure 6 indicates the potential extent of archaeological remains. In simple terms, any location within the area developed up to c 1907 is regarded as having the potential for standing or buried archaeological features; the earlier settlement core (as shown by the 1838 tithe map) may have more complex and deeply stratified deposits. It must be emphasised that this depiction of potential is indicative, not definitive, and future archaeological investigation and research will test and refine its value. An understanding of potential is broadly derived from the historic extent of the settlement itself.

Additionally, Figure 6 highlights the historic medieval and post-medieval core of the town: this area is of particular archaeological interest and sensitivity in that deposits are likely to provide valuable information on the early form and development of the settlement. The map also identifies a small number of sites and areas of known historic significance: ie, those where the presence of a significant structure or feature can be identified from historic maps or documentary sources but does not now survive above ground (for example, the probable former site of the castle at the west end of Coinagehall Street). Not specifically highlighted are sites for which the available sources are not adequate to pinpoint a specific location; for example, he St Mary Magdalene leper hospital


December 2002 Archaeological Potential 22

reputed to have been located in the St John’s area.

The fact that there appears to be very little surviving historic fabric from before the 16th century indicates that that understanding of Helston’s potentially rich archaeological resource is minimal. Any significant development in the urban core is likely to reveal information regarding the settlement form and morphology of the town. Therefore in line with Planning Policy Guidance notes (PPG) 15 and 16 it will be necessary to implement some form of archaeological mitigation.

It should be noted that there is also potential within the area for the survival of archaeological remains that predate or are unrelated to the development of the town. In the absence of specific information such as reports of finds, however, there is unlikely to be any prior indication of their presence.

NB. Overviews of the archaeological potential of the eight ‘character areas’ defined within the town are presented in section 5.

West end of Coinagehall Street the possible site of medieval triangular Market Place outside the gates of the castle, also the site of St Mary’s Chapel and the Coinage hall.


December 2002 Present Settlement Character 23

5. Present settlement character

Understanding character

In addition to assessing the broad elements of settlement character that define Helston as a whole, the CSUS investigation identified eight distinct character areas within the town’s historic (pre-1907) urban extent (see below; Fig 7 and character area summary sheets 1-7). Each character area has its own individual ‘biography’ which has determined its present character. These character areas are differentiated from each other by their varied historic origins, functions and resultant urban topography, by the processes of change which have affected each subsequently (indicated, for example, by the relative completeness or loss of historic fabric, or significant changes in use and status) and the extent to which these elements and processes are evident in the current townscape.

Together with the assessment of overall settlement character, the seven character areas offer a means of understanding the past and the present. In turn, that understanding provides the basis for a positive approach to planning future change which will maintain and reinforce the historic character and individuality of each area and the town as a whole - sustainable local distinctiveness.

Overall settlement character

One of the finest historic towns in Cornwall, Helston is an historic urban settlement of regional if not national importance. Particularly outstanding are the number, quality and diversity of its historic buildings, the high degree of completeness of the historic core, its distinctive cruciform plan and striking streetscapes. At the same time it maintains a strong sense of current economic and social vitality.

The primary elements contributing to the overall character of the town are summarised below.

Settlement form When mapped or viewed from the air Helston appears to have a strong cruciform plan form directly linked to its historic development as a market town, religious and commercial centre. The main east-west axis historically linked the town with Wendron (the mother church) to the east, and St Michael’s Mount to the west. The north-south axis linked the medieval Church, the central commercial area, and the port at Gweek to the south.

However, this cruciform plan is distorted on the ground by the sloping topography (particularly in Church Street) and the staggered junction formed by the central Market Place around the Guildhall. This interrupts movement between the four streets, making them separate self-contained zones which converge rather than two continuous routeways that cross.

Each of the main streets centring on the Market Place is isolated from the others. Both pedestrian and vehicle movement is difficult at this narrow bottleneck.



Cruciform plan formed by the convergence of Helston’s four major streets – clockwise from left, Meneage Street, Coinagehall Street, Church Street and Wendron Street



Within the historic core of the town the urban grain is generally tight, with Meneage and Wendron Streets both having a particularly strong sense of enclosure. Only in Coinagehall Street is there any sense of a large and open public space, this deriving from its origins as the long and broad market area of the medieval planned settlement.

The form of burgage plots established along Coinagehall Street in the medieval period has largely survived, directly influencing the variety of buildings on the streets. The medieval network of back streets, lanes and opes is also very dominant in today’s plan form.

The opes and lanes provide an excellent pedestrian network between the main streets, backlands, residential areas beyond and from the core of the town to the area along the river. These routes are a key aspect of the town’s distinctive character. Some provide access from car parks to the central area and are therefore important as pedestrian gateways. Others are less visible and less immediately inviting to the casual visitor but offer access to some of the more interesting and charming historic areas of the town. Wheelbarrow Ope is an interesting case, so named after the angled side stones which were used to push up wheelbarrows to and from Coinagehall Street.

Cobbled Ope

Tanyard Lane

Wheelbarrow Ope, note the angled stones to the left of the steps

The ‘sense of place’ presented to visitors passing through all the major gateways to Helston now derives from the essentially suburban and edge-of-town character of post-war residential and commercial development. Routes into the town and to the principal car parks from these points are winding and indirect, and for the most part pass through residential areas. These approaches give no hint of the town’s distinctive historic character and quality.

Survival of standing historic fabric Helston incorporates a large number of significant historic buildings (Fig 5). Many of these buildings are listed, emphasising the importance and quality



of the historic structures in this town. The majority of these date from the 18th and 19th centuries and reflect the prosperity of this period, but there are also examples of 16th and 17th century buildings. The earliest surviving building is probably the 16th century Angel Hotel in Coinagehall Street, formerly the town house of the Godolphin family and it is likely that other older structures have been concealed behind later facades, a well is located in the bar area of the hotel.

There are numerous historic public buildings in the town, including the ornate Gryll’s monument at the western, lower end of Coinagehall Street and the Guildhall and Methodist Church (once derided as an ‘eyesore’ by Pevsner) elsewhere along its length, with the former workhouse in Meneage Street, St Michael’s Church on the northern fringe of the historic town, the Mathematical School at the western end of Cross Street and Great Office at its east end.

Penrose Road, Meneage Street and the Old Cattle Market all have examples of 19th century industrial housing. It is quite remarkable that there is so little of this type of building in Helston and leads to the conclusion that the majority of workers housing in the town was accommodated in back plots and courtyards.

Much of the quality of the town’s historic environment, however, derives from the density of other surviving ‘polite’ but less elaborate structures. These include many good houses, including those subsequently used as shops in Meneage Street, the granite ashlar gaol off Wendron Street and the fine National School and associated buildings in Church Street. Some industrial and service buildings survive, particularly in the Five Wells Lane area and at the rear of the buildings fronting onto Meneage Street, and there are substantial standing remains of mill complexes on both the east and west sides of the Cober valley on the west side of the town.

Materials, architecture and detail The typical historic building in Helston is two or three storeys in height and two to three bays wide. All but a few of the buildings on the principal streets are built hard to the pavement; front gardens or enclosed areas setting the buildings back from the street are rare.

As one would expect for buildings that predate mass inland transport systems, the dominant building materials are local granite, elvan and killas, most often laid roughly to courses. Granite is used extensively throughout for quoins and other dressings. There are numerous examples of fine granite and elvan ashlar work, including the imposing late 18th century Great Office in Cross Street. There are also a few instances of high-quality brickwork, as on the early 19th century town house at 2 Church Street and the NatWest bank on Meneage Street although this is covered by render. The Methodist chapel in Coinagehall Street features Devon limestone but ‘non-local’ materials are generally scarce. Around Cross and Church Streets, in particular, there are a number of buildings with stucco or rendered surfaces; these are predominantly painted in pale colours. On rear elevations and on a few opeway buildings there are examples of slate hanging; this is, however, a minor element in the historic use of materials. There are also a few instances of horizontal timber cladding, typically over a wooden frame on the upper storey of workshops and buildings along opes. Roofs throughout the town are generally relatively steeply pitched and scantle slated.

High (up to c3m) slate-and-tile-capped stone walls of killas rubble define many plot and lane boundaries and are an unusual and distinctive feature of the town.

Domestic windows are in a variety of styles, including casements, sash and horizontal sliding sashes, with examples of both small and large panes. Bay



windows with side opening casements are a distinctive feature of upper floors in the principal retail and commercial areas such as Meneage Street. The latter also retains a very high standard of shop-fronts of various periods, many with distinctive rounded mullions.

Streetscapes A complex network of springs, leats and roadside conduits (known as kennels) brings running water into, through and around the town, introducing a distinctive architectural, visual and even aural element in several streets. Historically these dressed granite and cobbled kennels provided a water supply for street and domestic cleansing purposes; they are now essentially decorative but also serve to aid removal of surface water.

Kennels and bridges in Church Street

There are some good instances of granite surfacing in the town, most strikingly the dressed slabs tooled with concentric curved grooves which survive on part of the north sides of Coinagehall Street and Wendron Street. On corners, for example at the Guildhall, the granite is tapered to fan round the curve. In Church Street some of the houses on the east side have substantial granite slabs bridging the kennel outside their doors.

18th Century fan scored paving

Several streetscapes are enhanced by surviving instances of historic street furniture, including early post boxes, listed lamp-posts and telephone boxes, and ornate railings.

The town generally experiences high levels of on-street parking and this not only impedes views along streets and of individual buildings but can cause damage to historic fabric when vehicles mount the pavement to get by. Meneage Street and Market Place are subject to significant levels of through traffic. The negative impact on pedestrians is exacerbated by the narrowness of both roads and pavements in these areas.

On-Street parking on narrow congested streets.

Variety of building materials and window styles, Meneage Street



Landmarks and views There are spectacular views and glimpses into open countryside from many areas of the town. These views are a vital characteristic of the town and merit protection and strategies to conserve them in the long term. Most streets have views towards St Michael’s Church, either directly along the street or glimpses through opeways. The view west from Market Place along Coinagehall Street in particular is of regional importance. It encompasses a high-status medieval street lined with historic buildings, a vista is formed with the Grylls monument at the extent of the road and the open countryside beyond is unlikely to have changed significantly since the town was founded.

Helston can also be viewed from key points in the surrounding area. The church tower can be seen like a beacon from Loe Bar along the Cober valley, and the approaches to Helston from the west provide far-reaching views across the whole settlement. As a local landmark views of the church help the viewer to orientate themselves in relation to the town.

Due to the topography of the town, there are many views in to the rear plots of the buildings along the main streets and bounding the opeways, thus exposing the often poor condition and style of the fabric. These views form a vital visual link between different character areas.

Grylls Monument and important view out of town

The character areas

1: Church Street and Cross Street (Fig 7 & character area summary sheet 1) This is the finest area in Helston in terms of the status and quality of its buildings and overall sense of place. Predominantly residential, it has an atmosphere of elegance and quiet seclusion, contrasting sharply with the bustle of the nearby centre. Additionally, much of the area has a sense of greenery and green space, which is absent in most of the town.

The area around the church may be the earliest focus of settlement in Helston. It certainly feels separate from and perhaps preceding the medieval planned town (Fig 4). The present church built in the 18th century forms an important visual focus for views from in and around the town. The church gateway is a formal insertion into the streetscape and emphasises the formal planned element of this area. This contrasts with the informal 19th and 20th century villa area slightly to the north. In the later historic period the character area as a whole has seen a mix of residential, commercial and institutional uses, with a resulting diverse collection of buildings. There are also contrasts in status, from relatively humble ‘cottage’ dwellings near the church to landmark buildings such as the imposing late 18th century Great Office. Prior to the 18th century Cross Street developed as a high-status suburb set at a small distance from the economic core of the town and it remains predominantly residential. Evidence of older, humbler and smaller structures adds considerable interest to the area, which on closer inspection is made up of many periods of development. Several good 19th century institutional buildings cluster towards the north end of Church Street; at its southern end, close to the central Market Place, it is increasingly commercial. Survival of historic structures in this character area is very high and there is little modern development.



Green and elegant Cross Street

The area lies on the north side of a minor side valley of the Cober. The sloping valley-side topography of this Character area allows glimpses south towards the buildings and plots on the north side of Coinagehall Street across an area of greenery. This gives the area a generally ‘open’ feel, which is sharply terminated at the tightly bounded building line of Coinagehall Street, and introduces a much larger scale and dominant form of architecture. Church Street falls fairly steeply from the dominant position of the church before curving and rising sharply again to the Market Place and Guildhall; buildings are of necessity ‘stepped’ above each other as the street rises. There are well used pedestrian routes along Cross Street to Almshouse Hill and St John’s via the steps located at the Bowling Green and the steep lane leading from the end of Cross Street to St John’s bridge. Views along Church Street are consequently among the most striking in Helston.

Sloping, highly enclosed street, Church Street

The mix of periods, functions and status represented by the buildings here is matched by a diversity of architectural styles and materials. Of particular note is some fine granite ashlar work on several of the institutional buildings in Church Street and colour-washed render or stucco on some of the houses in Cross Street. Here in particular there are also elements of individual detailing and decoration – ornate wooden porches, bay windows, plasterwork friezes, iron railings, etc – which suggest an element of ostentation and display in the development of the street. Original gas lampposts and a preserved water pump also contribute to the visual interest of Cross Street. In Church Street, the cut granite channels and cobbles that form the kennel, together with the granite slabs, which act as ‘bridges’ across it, are a distinctive element in the streetscape.

The large gardens and mature trees around properties on the south side of the east end of Cross Street provide a ‘green heart’ to this quarter of Helston and, although on private property, their visual impact over a wider area provides a major public amenity. Trees in the churchyard are similarly prominent, but by contrast with the elegance of Cross Street the immediate area has an almost village atmosphere, with cottages and cottage gardens set above a narrow hollowed lane. This reflects the position of the church on the edge of the historic settlement and its separateness from the urban core; the transition from ‘rural’ to urban is sharply perceived in passing downhill from the church to the upper High status buildings Church Street



end of Church Street. Several buildings on Church Street and the north side of Cross Street have side or rear courtyards and glimpses of colourful gardens and greenery through gateways, opes and lanes add to the charm of the area. The sound of running water from the kennel, which follows the east side of Church Street, contributes a further ‘natural’ element.

Area 1: Archaeological potential The area around the church and churchyard is likely to be the earliest focus of settlement in Helston, with the potential for very significant buried evidence of the town’s origins and subsequent development. The northern end of Church Street has been intensively occupied over a long period and there is potential here for sequences of buildings along plot frontages and the remains of outhouses, workshops, rubbish pits and other ancillary activities to the rear. The quality and generally good repair of the standing historic buildings in this area make it unlikely that major demolition and rebuilding will take place in the foreseeable future and opportunities for archaeological investigation on a significant scale are therefore likely to be limited. Nevertheless, any subterranean work for utilities or in gardens could provide ‘keyhole’ opportunities for archaeological recording. It would also be beneficial to examine and record standing buildings and other structures such as walls marking plot boundaries. The field to the west of the church shows some indication of low earthworks: measured survey and geophysics in this area could potentially provide valuable information

2: Coinagehall Street (Fig 7 & character area summary sheet 2)

This area, historically the major axis of the planned medieval town, retains a sense of being the heart of the settlement. The topography of the former open market - its scale, the slight curve and marked slope of the street, together with the quality of many of the enclosing buildings - combine to create a striking urban space. There are memorable views along the street and out to open countryside. The particular character of this area derives directly from its historic role as the major street of the medieval settlement: a long and broad ‘cigar-shaped’ open market space including the site of the Coinagehall and Chapel of St Mary, flanked by burgage plots, aligned on the former castle site and defining the primary east – west axis of the early town. Coinagehall Street retains a sense of being the heart of the settlement. It projects a sense of space and movement, derived from the topography and scale of the former Market Place, and this, with the slight curve and marked slope of the street, combine to create a striking urban space. Many of the buildings are impressive and imposing in scale with a variety of heights and rooflines, ‘stepped’ along each side of the street to follow the slope. There is a variety of building styles and materials: rendered facades, many with projecting first-floor bow windows, predominate in the upper, eastern end of the street, which has predominantly retail and commercial functions, with a greater proportion of granite and killas stonework and residential properties (some now used as offices) at the lower end.



General view up Coinagehall Street

The tree-fringed Bowling Green at the western end of Coinagehall Street is a valuable formal green element in the streetscape, although partially screened from it by the Grylls monument. The monument itself is the primary landmark in all views west down the street, with a green backdrop formed by the open countryside beyond. The combination of the steeply sloping topography and the kennels on both sides of the road introduces the ‘natural’ sound and movement of rapidly running water into the streetscape.

Bowling Green Opes and lanes, some flanked by historic boundary walls and with distinctive surfacing and steps, run back from the street on both sides, giving access to the rear of plots, to car parks and residential areas and thus introducing additional pedestrian activity in the area. Some historic buildings at the rear of plots are visible from the opes on the south side of the street. To the rear of the Angel Hotel, accessed from Angel Ope is a sunken garden which was originally a Cornish wrestling field, Cornish

Wrestling being a popular and ancient Cornish sport. The site now provides a valuable green oasis of public space.

Ope from Coinagehall Street to Five Wells Lane

Area 2: Archaeological Potential Coinagehall Street represents the major axis of the planned medieval town and there is potential here for long sequences of building remains covering almost the whole of Helston’s medieval and post medieval history. The rear portions of plots along the street may retain the remains of outhouses, workshops, rubbish pits and other ancillary activities.

The most significant individual site is the Bowling Green at the western end of the street, reputed to have been occupied by a castle or fortified house. Remains of a medieval chapel, part of which may have been re-used as a coinage hall, may survive below the metalled road surface in the vicinity of the junction between Coinagehall Street and Almshouse Hill.



3: Central Market Place (Fig 7 & character area summary sheet 7)

This area represents the physical heart of the historic town, centred on the staggered cross roads. A busy central node for both pedestrian and vehicle traffic, it includes the steeply sloping triangular Market Place at the junction of Church and Coinagehall Streets The Guildhall is an important visual focus within the town but the quality of architecture and materials throughout the area is very high. Tall buildings and narrow streets and pavements create a strong sense of enclosure.

The major components of the present appearance of this area are the results of a substantial rebuilding in the 1830-40s, partly a reflection of the tin economy, but also to alleviate access difficulties to Wendron Street (probably little more than a narrow lane) and Meneage Street, the corners of which were rounded off. The Guildhall was constructed on the site of an earlier market house and a new market hall constructed on the east side of the open market area, now the Helston Folk Museum. A substantial town house, subsequently used as bank premises, was constructed on the corner of Market Place and Wendron Street at about the same time. These buildings display classically inspired architectural styles, are imposing in scale and substantially built in granite ashlar. The Guildhall forms a prominent landmark in the centre of the town.

Other buildings in the area are also of high quality. The Red Lion public house, facing the market area, is probably 18th century or earlier in origin but was remodelled with an ornate stucco façade in the later 19th century. The neighbouring early 19th century town house (now a shop) at 2 Church Street is an exception in the historic core of Helston in using brick as the major construction material, combined with high quality granite dressings and rusticated granite piers.

Fine brickwork and ornate stucco, Market Place The sharp angles of the buildings on the north side of the market area contrasts with the rounded corners of those on the opposite side. This rounding, almost certainly originating from the needs of 18th or early 19th century traffic at the junction of otherwise narrow streets, slightly enlarges the open area at the northern end of Meneage Street and fortuitously allows a good oblique view of the Guildhall façade and upper end of Coinagehall Street.

The area forms an important focal point in the centre of the town, but is sometimes daunting for pedestrians because of the busy traffic flow, the effects of which are exacerbated by the tall buildings, narrow pavements and the strong sense of enclosure. Access to the Guildhall is particularly difficult with the current street arrangement. The junction of the roads is cluttered by a proliferation of poorly detailed and located railings, lights, signs and service box that are

The Guildhall, Market Place



currently necessary to control the flow of traffic. A potentially striking view to the church through the narrow lane on the east side of the Guildhall is almost wholly blocked by street furniture and the Guildhall fire escape; the legibility of this welcome traffic-free pedestrian refuge between Meneage Street and Church Street is largely masked.

View of church blocked at Market Place

Area 3: Archaeological Potential As with other streets in the historic core, there is potential here for sequences of building remains along the current street frontages: evidence for the date at which the market space was established would be particularly valuable for understanding Helston’s development. The site of the former United Methodist chapel on the corner of Church Street and Penrose Road, now used as a car park, would merit archaeological investigation if redevelopment is proposed.

4: Five Wells area (Fig 7 & character area summary sheet 3)

This area was historically a focus for industry and services, located on the valley side below the area of the planned medieval settlement. It is predominantly laid out along narrow and sinuous streets and lanes with high bounding walls and projects an enclosed, secluded and ‘secret’ air.

This area follows the lower ground in the side valley running west, north of Coinagehall Street, together with a strip along the east bank of the Cober. It was historically a focus for urban industrial and service activities, including tanneries, mills, breweries, coach houses and stabling, as well as a small amount of workers housing in 19th century cottage rows down by the old cattle market. These cottages are of solid rubble stone construction with granite quoins and red-brick voussoir window arches. The sash windows to the side (both upper and lower floors) of the entrance door are set in segmental arches, whilst the windows above the doors are semi-circular arched. Roofs are slate and have brick chimney stacks. The terraces are set back from the highway by low walled front yards.

Throughout the area the streets and lanes are mostly sinuous and relatively narrow and the layout and appearance of the buildings suggests piecemeal infilling on the sloping valley side below the planned medieval area. Five Wells Lane and Tanyard Lane are both bounded by notable examples of the high rubble-stone, slate-topped walls that are a distinctive feature of Helston. There is a strong sense of enclosure throughout, rear elevations of tall buildings on Coinagehall Street providing a dominant and unkempt mass along the boundary of Five Wells Lane.



Narrow and sinuous Five Wells lane

The informality of this area contrasts with the streets and spaces elsewhere in the study area, which are very formal in their layout and use high status building materials, such as ashlar stone. The layout and scale suggests the redevelopment of back plots and courtyards associated with the buildings on the main streets. This is also one of the few places where there is some hint of the courts and slums that previously characterised Helston. The western end of this character area forms part of the pedestrian route from the church down to the St John’s area.

The early 18th century ‘well’ (in reality a spout) on Five Wells Lane is an outstanding feature, with a large cobbled and stepped basin set below the level of the lane. Another well nearby in Brewery Lane is silted and poorly maintained.

The Well, Five Wells Lane.

Area 4: Archaeological Potential The historic concentration of industrial and service uses in this area, including tanneries, mills, breweries, coach houses and stabling, provides significant potential for both buried archaeological deposits and for investigating and recording standing buildings and historic plots. This may also have been an area of early expansion from the initial medieval settlement and thus could hold important evidence of the early development of the town.

The area also holds significant structures relating to water supply and these merit further study. All maintenance and restitution work on historic wells and related features should be subject to advice from the Local Authority Conservation Officer and, where appropriate, archaeological recording.

5: Post medieval urban expansion - Wendron Street (Fig 7 & character area summary sheet 4)

Part of the medieval east-west axis, this is a predominantly residential and, as it proceeds away from the centre of the town, suburban area. Only the portion close to the centre shares in the strong urban character of the historic core of the town. Buildings are generally plain in form and local stone is dominant in the colour and texture of the streetscape.

Wendron Street is the historic route from Helston towards Penryn and Truro and the mining district to the northeast. It is now laid out for one-way traffic. At its southwest end, closest to the central Market Place, the Godolphin Club and former Baptist Chapel are significant landmark public buildings and there are some secondary retail premises and offices in the same area. Buildings here are almost all set hard onto the back edge of the pavement and are a mix of two and three storeys.



There is much good ashlar stonework in this area, with a group of rendered or stucco buildings on the north side. Projecting first-floor bays in a variety of styles are a feature, as in Coinagehall and Meneage Streets, and there is a distinctive ‘saw-tooth’ roofline established by numerous dormers and the pedimented frontages of the Baptist Chapel and Godolphin Club.

Commercial and residential buildings, strong frontage

Close to the central Market Place, the road and pavements are extremely narrow, making pedestrian movement difficult. There is a strong sense of confinement and enclosure, compounded by parked vehicles on the north side and the proximity of passing traffic. This is broken by the open frontage of the car park on the site of the former Grammar School. The original building line of the Baptist Chapel was set back, but the frontage has been infilled with a single-storey extension; this does not enhance the historic character of the building or combine sympathetically with the

generally plain form of building frontages in the area.

Beyond the centre of the town, Wendron Street becomes predominantly residential. It develops a progressively more suburban character into Godolphin Road and stretches out to the site of the former station and beyond to the bypass. In this area the road and pavements are wider and the buildings a mix of two-storey rows, terraces, ‘cottages’ and villas. Tucked in behind the site of the old school and workhouse on Shute Hill is a listed grade II prison. This would have indicated the extent of development at the time which it was built, the less sociable activities being located at the edges of town and as such is an important building in this area.

Running parallel to Wendron Street and Godolphin Road are Penrose Road and Sanctuary Lane, both of which provide handy pedestrian and vehicular routes that avoid the congestion and narrow pavements of the Market Place area. Buildings are predominantly 19th century although there are a few 17th and 18th century structures and some 20th century infill and replacement. Architectural forms are generally plain and facades predominantly of stone.

Area 5: Archaeological Potential This is an area of predominantly residential and suburban expansion from the historic core, with modest potential

Wendron Street, showing Godolphin Club on left.

The Flora Centre / former Baptist Chapel, Wendron Street.



for sequences of building remains along the street frontages which could add to understanding of Helston’s development chronology. Examination of standing buildings may also be of value.

The former workhouse and school site at Shute Hill, currently the subject of development proposals, will merit archaeological investigation; the 19th century Grammar School site, now a car park, should similarly be considered for examination in the case of redevelopment.

6: Post medieval urban expansion - Meneage Street (Fig 7 & character area summary sheet 5)

The historic route south to the Lizard peninsula, this is now the busy commercial focus of the town. The area has many good buildings and historic shopfronts in a diversity of forms and styles. Narrow pavements and carriageway, on-street parking and the majority of buildings set hard onto the back edge of the pavement, combine to create a strong sense of enclosure, except where later 20th century traffic engineering has opened up areas around road junctions.

The northern end of Meneage Street, close to the former central Market Place, is the busiest area of Helston. Although formerly a mix of residential and commercial buildings (with surviving traces of a number of good town houses), it now hosts most of the principal shops and during the day there is a permanent bustle of activity along its narrow pavements. Parked cars and the continual one-way flow of traffic towards the town centre contribute to the sense of an active street scene but can present significant difficulties for pedestrians wishing to cross; air and noise pollution are also evident.

Parked cars causing congestion on Meneage Street

There is a strong building line, hard up to the back of the pavement, and many of the buildings at this end of the street are of three storeys, giving a strong sense of enclosure. Lanes and opes running back from the street between buildings provide glimpses of workshops, stabling and stone walls at the rear of plots, and, on the west side, occasional glimpses out to open country. There is a good grouping of high quality historic shopfronts in this area and many of the buildings have projecting bay windows to the upper floors, in some instances continued up to roof level.

Arts and Crafts style shop front Meneage Street

Proprietors name on shop front, Meneage Street



Mid 20th century shop front, Meneage Street

The piecemeal development, rebuilding and replacement of buildings along the street is evidenced by the diversity of styles and detail and by variations in the roofline and roof pitches. Although many of the buildings present themselves as 19th and 20th century in appearance, it is highly likely that there are many 17th and 18th century buildings concealed behind later alterations and shopfronts.

The outer extent of the historic urban area of Helston is marked by two mid 19th century landmark buildings - the workhouse complex (later Meneage Hospital, now converted for residential use), with its handsome gateway and boundary walls, and the nearby Bible Christian chapel, now a squash court.

Former Meneage Hospital and Union workhouse.

Meneage Street’s historic function as the direct route into Helston from Gweek and the Lizard peninsula has been significantly altered by later 20th century traffic engineering: much of the traffic approaching the town centre from the east is now routed into Meneage Street via Trengrouse Way.

Area 6: Archaeological Potential Meneage Street represents expansion from the historic core along one of the important routes out of Helston. Along the street frontages there is potential for sequences of building remains covering much of Helston’s post medieval history and possibly earlier development. The rear portions of plots may retain remains of outhouses, workshops, rubbish pits and other ancillary activities. Many of the standing buildings in the area may conceal evidence of earlier structures now incorporated within them and a survey and recording programme would be of value. The high quality historic shop-fronts in this area also merit recording.

7: Post Medieval expansion – Meneage Road

Continuation of the historic route south to the Lizard peninsular, this area is increasingly suburban with grassed front gardens fronting the pavements, large stone built detached and semi-detached houses set in their own gardens. The road and pavements are wide and spacious and there is plenty of green space.

Meneage Road, the southern extension of Meneage Street, has been incorporated into the bypass route for traffic to and from the west, via another new link road, Furry Way. The junctions created by these new roads have opened significant spaces in a street that is otherwise relatively strongly enclosed. The traffic management measures - bollards, signage, crossing points, traffic islands and mini-roundabouts - associated with these new roads and junctions are visually dominant and tend to mask the historic axis along Meneage Street.

Commencing to the south of the Meneage Hospital, the character of this area is influenced significantly by stone cottages and villas, with gardens, a raised pavement and areas of grass verge,



hinting at its earlier semi-rural, edge-of-settlement character. This street is a 19th century ribbon development of stone-built villa-style properties of an exclusively residential nature usually set in their own gardens. The ribbon development was constructed on the edge of a medieval strip field system, which previously extended along the whole of the south eastern side of the town, but has been subsequently built upon by modern developments. The street becomes increasingly leafy and All Saints church and cemetery provides a valuable open and green characteristic to the area.

Area 7: Archaeological Potential Meneage Road represents further expansion from the historic core along one of the important routes out of Helston. There is limited potential for urban archaeological remains in this area given its late establishment, but there may be some potential for medieval remains relating to the extensive medieval strip field system previously located to the east.

8: River valley and St John’s (Fig 7 & character area summary sheet 6) The character area lies across the major route from the west and includes what was originally a medieval suburb around a crossing point on the Cober. Much of it is low-lying, along the valley floor, and portions have served as the site for Helston’s fairs and cattle markets, industrial activities and the town’s major public open space. The character area incorporates the small valley-side historic suburb of St John’s, developed initially around a religious foundation serving travellers close to a crossing point on the Cober, together with low-lying land along the valley floor south west of the town. If there was a pre-14th century port at Helston it is likely to have been located here. The 16th

century St John’s Bridge links routes from the west to the medieval core of the town around the west end of Coinagehall Street. The late 20th century bypass on this flank of the town widens and realigns the historic turnpike road, and divides much of the character area from the town.

The bypass, St John’s area looking west. The area has had a variety of historic uses but in recent times several industrial and commercial activities have declined and there are now significant areas of derelict and underused land. The former cattle market, directly below the steep scarp upon which the reputed site of the castle lies, is now a relatively little used car park.

Former Cattle Market, now car park, St John’s area

Some good quality dressed granite boundary features relating to the cattle market remain in situ and an interesting group of 19th century terraced houses overlooks this area from the east. The present cattle market complex on the west side of the bypass (the town’s traditional fair site) is now little used and



poorly maintained and its future use is uncertain. Part of the former gasworks site is now derelict (potentially contaminated land) and the remainder in use as a garage and caravan dealership. A former petrol filling station in this area is also now derelict. Problems in presentation of this ‘gateway’ area are not new: the CPRE survey of Cornwall in 1930 noted that a ‘gas-container, painted red, greets the visitor approaching from Penzance . . . it should be possible to make an effective screen of trees, and paint the container green’.

The early 20th century Coronation Park, based around a large artificial lake, is designated in the Local Plan as an Open Area of Local Significance (OALS). It is well used and the recent skate park next to the lake is a vibrant and successful community amenity. The current leisure use of the area represents an element of continuity with its historic role as a fair site. There are links from the park into the Penrose amenity area and footpaths to Loe Pool and the coast path. The lack of good links from the town centre to the Penrose amenity area is a missed opportunity to link Helston and the river valley leading south to Loe Bar.

View of Helston from Coronation Lake

On the western side of the bypass opposite St John’s Bridge are some late 19th and 20th century houses set well back from the main road in their own grounds, giving the area a suburban air. This area is bounded to the west by a steep and thickly wooded slope and is the probable site of St John’s Hospital. The buildings

on the former road to the west, now known as Sithney Old Road, include a former mill, now in residential use, with ancillary structures, and a group of stone and brick cottages. Construction of the bypass has revealed the rear elevations of these cottages. This, in conjunction with the derelict and underused sites in the area, contributes to the less than positive ‘gateway’ experience for traffic moving along the bypass.

Area 7: Archaeological Potential This area has potential for a variety of significant archaeological remains.

Buried archaeology may survive relating to the medieval religious foundations located in this area, the Hospitals of St John and the lazar house dedicated to St Mary Magdalene. In addition to structural and occupation remains, these sites may also retain medieval burials; a medieval coffin slab from the site of St John’s chapel is now at Sithney church.

Just outside the study area is the site of Castle Wary, possibly a round, but latterly the site of Helston Valley Tin Co.. There are likely to be remains of the tin working and associated buildings and the potential for older finds relating to the round.

The 16th century St John’s Bridge remains in situ but the area may also retain evidence for earlier bridges (a bridge was recorded in 1260), routes to the river crossing and associated engineering works. Elements of roadside buildings associated with the medieval suburb may also survive.

The mill complex on Sithney Old Road merits investigation and recording. Evidence may also survive of other mills and related water management systems along the sides and base of the valley – two mills at St John’s were recorded on the tithe



map and there is documentary notice of a 16th century tucking mill.

The Cober flows through the metalliferous district to the north and has almost certainly been streamed for tin in the past; archaeological evidence of this is likely to survive along the course of the river.

Pococke referred in the mid-18th century to ‘large timber yards’ (presumably serving the mining industry) in the area below the town; traces of these may survive.

The former gasworks site may retain significant remains relating to the early history of public provision of gas in Helston; part of this site is likely to be contaminated.

The lower-lying ground along the valley bottom, particularly below St John’s Bridge, may hold peat or alluvial deposits with potential for significant environmental information. If Helston had a pre-14th century harbour it is likely to have been located in this area.

Areas outside the historic core

Lowertown Approximately 1.5 km north of Helston, the small settlement of Lowertown clings to the sides of a steep and wooded valley. The roads are narrow and the buildings essentially rural in size, style and historic function. Some of the buildings are listed, the remainder being a mix of 19th century farm buildings and small-scale 20th century residential developments. The area retains an overwhelmingly rural character.

Area to the north of Church Street To the north of the Church lies an area of 19th and 20th century villa housing. This area is characterised by large

residences situated in their own grounds and provides an attractive back drop to character area one and provides an excellent transition from the suburban residential areas to the northern gateway of the town. Helston School formerly a grammar school is also located in this area.

20th century residential development The areas of later 20th century housing around Helston are clearly distinct from the central historic portion, in terms of both the use of modern materials and design elements and the absence of significant locally distinctive components. The public housing of the 1940s and 1950s, partly system built, is largely of two storeys, but characterise development of the late 20th century.

In general, the recent residential areas make relatively little reference to the underlying historic landscape: whilst estate boundaries often have historical precedents, they usually ignore other historic divisions within their sites. An exception is the local authority housing in the Borlase Close/Grange Road area, immediately south of Coinagehall Street, which respects the outline of medieval strip fields over a small area; the lines of boundaries similarly fossilising an earlier strip system have been retained in the Albion Road area, on the hillside overlooking the town from the south.


December 2002 Heritage led Regeneration and Positive Management of the Historic Environment

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6. Heritage-led regeneration and positive management of the historic environment

Characterisation of the historic environment of Helston has produced a valuable dataset on the historic fabric, archaeological potential and townscape character of the historic town.

Most importantly characterisation reveals the essential dynamic factors underpinning Helston’s character. Regeneration planning which is informed and inspired by these elements can take a much more sure-footed and proactive approach to creating beneficial change, both reinforcing and enhancing existing character and ensuring that new developments are better integrated into the existing urban framework, more focused and ultimately more successful.

This information can certainly be used as a conventional conservation and planning tool to define constraints, as a yardstick against which to measure new development and policy proposals and as the basis of well founded conservation management, restoration and enhancement schemes and policies.

Character-based principles for regeneration

Helston’s distinctive character is based on a unique combination of factors. Primary amongst these are its valley-side location, the historic development of its core from a planned medieval settlement and the long period of relative prosperity it enjoyed as the market town for a large agricultural and industrial hinterland. Also important was its role as the preferred place of residence for a

significant middle class population during much of the 18th and 19th centuries. The decline of both the industrial and agricultural economies in the later 19th century resulted in the near ‘fossilisation’ of a historic built environment of extraordinary charm, interest, character and quality. It is the high quality of the built environment, which ranks Helston with nationally important towns making the town distinctive within Cornwall.

A strategy for Helston’s regeneration soundly based on characterisation should incorporate the following elements as fundamental themes:

• Understanding the contribution made by the topography and landscape setting of the historic environment. Understanding and respect for the distinctive contribution which physical and historic topography and landscape setting make to the townscape.

• Enhancement of the historic built environment should underpin any new build and public realm improvements. A specific focus on maintaining and enhancing the high quality of the historic built environment should underpin all new urban design and architecture and planning for the public realm. This will be particularly evident in the care and concern for significant historic elements of streetscapes within the town - for example, kennels, railings, surfaces, kerbs, walls, etc - as well as the details of individual historic buildings (windows, doors, roofing materials, chimneys, etc).

• Repairing ‘tears’ in the urban fabric. A targeted emphasis on repairing the relatively small number of ‘tears’ in the urban fabric – those aspects of the current built environment which detract from or are inappropriate to its character – in order to reinstate the overall high



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quality and distinctiveness of the townscape.

• Enhancing approaches to the town. A process of enhancing approaches to the core of the town by attention to:

• the historically distinctive opes, lanes and back plots by which pedestrians reach the centre from car parks;

• the approaches from the main arterial routes around the town to the central car parks; and

• the impressions of the character of the town presented by the primary gateways.

• the connections between the various character areas and from the periphery to the core.

• Promoting Helston as one of Cornwall’s finest towns. Presentation, interpretation and promotion of Helston as one of Cornwall’s finest towns, a place of quality, character and significance.

Regeneration and the historic environment: key themes and issues

Characterisation has highlighted regeneration and conservation opportunities both for the historic area of Helston as a whole and for specific areas and sites. These opportunities can be grouped into the following themes.

Repairing ‘tears’ in the urban fabric Helston is fortunate in that, by comparison with many other Cornish towns, there are relatively few tears in its historic urban fabric. The overall quality of the built environment, however, throws into sharp contrast a small number of structures and sites where character has been eroded by a past lack

of care. It would be of significant benefit to the process of maintaining and enhancing Helston’s character if the possibilities of redeveloping such sites were actively encouraged through the planning, conservation and regeneration mechanisms.

Where redevelopment sites are identified within the historic core of the town, however, it is important that new design demonstrates an emphasis on quality in design and appropriate materials, which matches that of its context. This is not to seek pastiche, rather to say that any new build in Helston, while being entirely of its own era, should be fully informed by the distinctive elements of the town’s historic character.

There are occupied and under-occupied commercial buildings in Helston, which are in poor condition and would benefit from a programme of repair and maintenance. The strategic use of publicly funded grants (whether from a THI scheme or other funding source), could have a positive impact on the condition of many buildings in the study area and provide an important opportunity to reinstate distinctive architectural features on the historic building stock and in the public realm.

Reusing redundant historic buildings There is an opportunity to increase occupation of underused buildings by encouraging further utilisation of upper floors, primarily for residential use (for example, Living Over The Shop (LOTS) schemes), and buildings at the rear of the main street plots. The condition of many rear plots is poor. Work to enhance the surfacing and accessibility of opes would provide opportunities to develop uses for upper stories and rear plots accessed from the opeways. In the longer term, this should have beneficial outcomes in terms of greater town centre activity and in improving levels of building maintenance and occupation and thus



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securing the future of historic buildings and the vitality of the town centre.

There are also opportunities to enhance the vitality of the town by promoting reuse of some underused local landmark buildings such as the Passmore Edwards Institute and The Willows.

There is potential for the local authority, RDA or other interested agencies to seek to acquire, re-use, enhance and promote sites in Helston as a stimulus and contribution to regeneration investment.

Maintaining and enhancing the public realm Public realm works could make a significant contribution to maintaining and enhancing the sense of quality and special character within the historic centre of Helston. There is particular scope for repair and reinstatement of streetscape details such as granite paving, slate topped walls, railings and hand rails (as at Shute Hill and the potentially important visitor access via Castle Hill Steps). It is important that historic surfacing elements such as granite paving, kerbs and gutters are retained and reused wherever possible, and that new surfacing materials are selected to complement their distinctive aspects and thus reinforce the distinctive image of high quality associated with Helston and which attracts people and businesses into the area. New surfaces may be designed to reflect the historic urban hierarchy, using materials and techniques appropriate to the status of the area and, where possible, of the same size unit as nearby historic survivals. Attention to detail such as tapered corner stones will be important to the success of any scheme.

Some town centre car parks are linked to the main shopping streets by opes and lanes. Both car parks and access routes would benefit from improved signing for visitors and measures to enhance bounding walls, surfaces, etc Some landscaping and ‘greening’ may be

possible in or around the car parks. Enhancement of these routes is also important in terms of promoting increased use for back plot buildings and upper floors, for which in many instances the opes provide access. Improved signage, access and parking would help to draw people into the town, increase the vitality and occupancy of the area and promote the town centre as a shopping destination in competition with out of town stores.

A review of street furniture and signage practice would provide an opportunity to remove ‘clutter’ from streets. Some key views and historic routes are obscured by signs, street furniture and traffic-management features. The orange KDC rubbish bins are visually intrusive in some parts of the town. There is scope to consider new designs for future street furniture that would enhance the historic character and distinctiveness. This may be a potential opportunity for community involvement.

Overhead cables are not significant in creating visual blight in the town overall, although there are locations - the Market Place/Wendron Street junction, around the old prison on Shute Hill and along Five Wells Lane, for example - where it would be beneficial to seek underground routing of the services. Elsewhere, any future proposals for additional cabling should be assessed in terms of the impact on the character of the urban environment and underground routing considered.

Using local materials, construction techniques and labour. Not only will the character of the town be preserved and enhanced, by using local materials, construction techniques and labour, there is direct economic benefit. Increased demand can lead to additional jobs in the extraction and working of the raw materials as well as an improved skill base in craftsmen making,



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installing and maintaining the final product. A detailed audit of the nature and source of local materials and the amounts required to carry out repairs to historic buildings and contribute to new build schemes would be a positive first step. The potential for recycling existing stockpiles of local raw material (such as Cornwall County Council’s granite bank) could also be investigated.

Sustaining urban green space With the exception of the churchyard and Coronation Lake area, the historic area of Helston has little in the way of publicly accessible green spaces. Views to the countryside to the west and private gardens, particularly in Church Street, Cross Street and the suburban portions of Meneage and Wendron Streets, contribute a significant element to the sense of place.

There is certainly potential for additional greening around the present and former cattle market sites, and possibly for additional roadside trees to soften the passage of the western bypass through the river valley and St John’s area. This will help to present Helston as a welcoming place to be visited by car users and draw pedestrians into the town centre via the footpath from the Cattle Market. The importance to the townscape of the green presence established by the large private gardens off Cross Street may require long-term liaison and partnership with householders to ensure the continuance of this element.

Resolving pedestrian–vehicle conflicts and increasing connectivity Traffic is an undoubted problem in the centre of Helston. The Local Plan notes that most local traffic does not need to enter the main shopping streets and management of traffic in these areas undoubtedly offers a significant opportunity for improvement of the town centre environment, both in terms

of the removal of vehicle and environmental hazards to pedestrians and in reducing the visual clutter of on-street parking and intrusion of traffic signage on the townscape. The Plan signals the need to further reduce non-essential through traffic and widen and improve pedestrian surfaces in the shopping centre within the Conservation Area. Meneage Street is identified as the primary focus for such environmental enhancements. The Plan also gives general support to the promotion of cycling and notes that a study has been carried out on developing cycling facilities and routes in Helston.

Further provision of pedestrian priority is a key element in improving the urban experience in Helston, with the primary aim of enhancing the core as a ‘magnet’ for visitors and shoppers. Market Place, in particular, merits traffic management measures which would create a more ‘people-friendly’ environment.

However, there is a greater opportunity here. The various character areas in Helston are isolated from each other by the pedestrian / vehicle conflict in Market Place. If this conflict was resolved, the different areas could start to interact with each other more effectively again and the improved pedestrian access and physical connection would open up underused areas in the town, promoting higher occupancies of buildings that may have been tucked away in rear plots or side-streets.

Away from the centre, there is a specific need to facilitate pedestrian links between the town and the Coronation Lake/Penrose area.

A comprehensive review of transport and traffic in the Helston area, should focus specifically on the overall need for vehicle access throughout the town centre and the potential for encouraging greater use of the car parks around it. One potential improvement might be a



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timed access scheme for heavy goods vehicles delivering to the town centre.

Reviewing conservation designations Helston currently has a large number of Listed Buildings (211), but there are others that are of architectural or historic interest and might be considered for listing protection. Whilst increased designation is sometimes perceived as a constraint against regeneration, it can also provide important opportunities to draw down additional funds for heritage-led regeneration schemes. There is potential for a supplementary ‘local list’ to acknowledge the significance of and provide information about locally important historic structures. The ‘other historic buildings’ identified on Figure 5 and in CSUS digital mapping offer an initial baseline for such a list.

This study has identified that a larger area of the historic settlement may merit inclusion in the Conservation Area. There is an opportunity to consider alterations to the Conservation Area boundary in order to acknowledge the significance of historic fabric, boundaries, archaeological remains and buildings in rear plots falling just outside the current boundary. Designation will ensure that development involving these elements will enhance and preserve the character of the conservation area. One possible approach would be to alter the Conservation Area to follow the boundary of the 1907 historic settlement (Fig 5).

There is also opportunity to consider whether the tall slate capped walls found throughout the town should be included in the article 4(1) direction.

Co-ordinating change The diversity of players within the regeneration process underlines the need for comprehensive conservation plans and management schemes for particular sites and areas of the town, to guide and

inform future action. A town centre master plan would be of value in this respect, as would a similar document for the river valley and St John’s area to the west. Smaller areas such as the Bowling Green would also benefit from detailed plans for enhancement.

Detailed planning guidance would be beneficial for any sites identified as major regeneration opportunities, to reduce uncertainty and promote architectural excellence. This guidance could include detailed characterisation, strong urban design guidance and, potentially, requirements for PPG16 evaluation of the archaeological resources and PPG15 assessment of the existing buildings.

Asserting Helston’s historic importance To capitalise on its unique historic environment as a factor in regeneration, it is important that the quality, completeness and interest of the historic environment in Helston is recognised and used as a positive asset. The town would benefit from a series brown heritage attraction signs located at the key entrances, advertising it for example as an historic market and/or stannary town. Use of Cornish as well as English on these and other signs within the town, would help to emphasise Helston’s long association with the Cornish language.

The town trail and its accompanying leaflet and the current ‘Discover Helston’ guide are significant contributions in this respect, but there may be potential for additional on-site interpretation, guided walks and trails based on specific themes (for example, water-wells, kennels, the Cober, mill leats, etc - or the geology of materials used in historic buildings). Trails, guides and other promotional initiatives could usefully be integrated and promoted as a single package.



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Enhancing links with the surrounding area The greatest opportunity for regeneration in Helston has to be strengthening the town’s links with the surrounding areas, particularly the immediate periphery of the historic core where the bypass comes through. As a major gateway into the town, improved road layout, signage and landscaping to improve the visual impression of Helston, whilst difficult to achieve, would provide a fundamental boost to the town’s economy and present a Helston as an attractive place to live work and visit.

There is potential for enhancing and promoting the links between Helston and the major natural landscape assets nearby, particularly the Penrose/Loe Pool area (the latter a SSSI and the area part of both Heritage Coast and AONB designations) and the South West Coast Path. The St John’s character area represents a prime opportunity for the development of sites supporting leisure and tourism facilities, the focus of which is the link between the town and the coast via the river valley. This would attract more people to the town generally and in conjunction with the pedestrian route from the cattle market help to draw at least some of the extra visitors up into the centre of town. Edge of town shopping attractions such as Tesco’s play an increasingly important role in the lives of local people and visitors and it is likely that more will be proposed for Helston. Whilst this type of development does have a legitimate place in the development of a town, when-ever appropriate town centre sites are available and able to support commercial uses; they should be given serious consideration. This will ensure that historic buildings are kept in use and good repair. Where edge of town locations are utilised, care should be taken to provide links back to the town centre both in the form of signage and provision of public transport.

Opportunities in the different character areas

1: Church Street and Cross Street • Manage and maintain streetscape

detail • Safeguard ‘green’ element • Identify additional uses for The

Willows • Repair ‘tears’ in urban fabric

This character area is so complete and for the most part well maintained that opportunities for large-scale initiatives are unlikely to arise. Nevertheless, the area is of primary significance for regeneration because of its quality: it contributes substantially both as part of the ‘visitor experience’ which Helston offers and in terms of quality of life and ‘pride of place’ for residents.

The quality and interest of street furniture, surfacing, the kennels and other detail in this area merits careful management and maintenance. The contribution to the overall townscape made by the ‘green’ element of the area may need to be safeguarded through liaison with property owners on replacement planting of trees and shrubs.

The Willows on Church Street has been identified as underused. Increased use would help to ensure that the building is maintained in the longer term but would also contribute to maintaining the vitality of Church Street.

The Willows, Church Street

The former vicarage at 32 Church Street has undergone significant alterations, including blocking of its grand arched



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central doorway and addition of a further storey with a shallow pitched roof. The alterations are not sympathetic to the historic character of the building or the streetscape and it is strongly suggested that options for obtaining reinstatement of the character of the building be explored. Reinstatement of the original height and main entrance of the former vicarage at 32 Church Street would beneficially restore the historic character of a significant building and streetscape.

The Old Vicarage, Church Street.

2: Coinagehall Street • Repair ‘tears in urban fabric’ –

redevelopment and repairs • New uses for underused and vacant

buildings • Repair/reinstate streetscape details • Enhance Bowling Green area • Review Conservation Area • Reduce vehicle – pedestrian conflict,

congestion The 1960-70s Post Office in Coinagehall Street is an instance of a past intervention that has significantly eroded the distinctiveness of this portion of townscape. The horizontal emphasis of the design, continuous roof line, upstanding gable and materials, merge poorly with and detract from the historic character of the streetscape. If an opportunity for redevelopment of this site occurs it offers the potential to make a successful contemporary contribution

to one of the most striking streetscapes in the town.

20th century post office, Coinagehall Street.

The buildings on the street are typically in fair to good condition. There are opportunities to improve use of underused and vacant buildings, for example, at the rear of the Post Office and the coach house to the rear of 58 Coinagehall Street. These buildings will require investment in repairs before they can be occupied.

There are several opportunities to reinstate, repair or upgrade elements of the streetscape; for example; the reinstatement of railings to the front of the Methodist Chapel on Coinagehall Street, repairs to boundary walls and surfaces along opes off the street and some significant attention (including higher-quality hand rails) to the steps ascending from the former cattle market. These offer a potentially attractive and striking route to the historic core of the town for able-bodied visitors arriving at the car park now on this site.

The Bowling Green at the west end of Coinagehall Street is important as the site of the former castle and merits high-quality public realm provision. There is potential for improvement of the fencing around the playing area and of the walls and surface of the encircling ‘promenade’. Opportunities might also be sought to replace both the public toilets adjoining the Grylls monument and the bowling clubhouse with buildings that reflect the significance of the site within the historic town. Some relatively small-scale tree surgery here would open



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up views to the Coronation Lake and downstream along the Cober valley and emphasise the topographic significance of the site in the landscape.

Repairs to the rear elevation of some buildings overlooking the site would also enhance it as a public space.

Poor quality fencing to Bowling Green/Castle site

There is also an opportunity to review the Conservation Area boundary to the rear of the south side of Coinagehall Street in order to incorporate the full extent of the historic burgage plots.

The kennels are an important distinctive element in the streetscape and emphasise the linear routes between key areas in the town. In places they have been ‘bridged’ with concrete or metal sheets to allow easier access to the road or to buses. This concession to modern convenience is understandable but further concealment of the kennels will lead to the loss of a key characteristic of the area. The presence of the kennel requires a very low granite kerb from the pavement which is an important feature characterising the main streets. An enhancement opportunity here would be the replacement of more recent concrete inner kerbs with local granite.

Kennel – note low kerb and cobbled base, some kennels on the south section of Coinagehall Street have cut granite beds.

Bridged Kennel

Coinagehall Street will be an important test of the success of future traffic management initiatives. At times it becomes very congested, particularly on market days when stalls are set up along the south side of the street. Reductions in traffic would allow pedestrians to traverse the street with greater ease and make more available the important view along the street and out into the countryside.



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3: Central Market Place • Reduce vehicle – pedestrian conflict. • Rationalise street furniture to

enhance views to church. • Ensure high quality and appropriate

design in any development of United Methodist chapel site.

Traffic is a dominant element in this character area and it represents a key target for reducing vehicle – pedestrian conflict in order to encourage and enable greater pedestrian freedom within Helston’s historic core. Despite an extension of the narrow granite pavement in Market Place at the junction with Wendron Street, the pedestrian experience is still poor.

Rationalisation of the clutter of street furniture which currently obscures the striking view towards the church through the lane on the east side of the Guildhall would certainly be worthwhile, as would exploration of alternative options for emergency escape facilities for the Guildhall. The ugly service box between the Guildhall and the bank could be relocated or housed underground.

Development on the former United Methodist chapel site on the corner of Church Street and Penrose Road would reintroduce the sense of enclosure at the lower, northern end of the former Market Place. The quality of the existing buildings and streetscape in this area demands the highest quality of design and materials in any new-build.

The demolished United Methodist Chapel.

4: Five Wells area • Continue project to refurbish wells • Repair and new use for historic

building and yard in Brewery Lane • Repair programme for boundary

walls

The outstanding listed (Grade II) well feature in Five Wells Lane is the subject of a restoration project promoted by Helston Conservation Society. Proposed repairs to the well basin, the slate topped boundary walls and railings protecting the well from the street will all enhance this important feature. The well itself is a key element of the town trail, yet the trail sign is not easily visible from the street and could beneficially be relocated. The well is not always easily visible from the lane as there are many cars parked along the railings. A Research project could be undertaken to assess if the weight of the cars is causing structural damage to the well. There is another well nearby in Brewery Lane, which is silted and poorly maintained. These features certainly offer potential for a continuing community-based project, with advice and aid channelled through the District Council.

The well on Five Wells Lane.

The well on Five Wells Lane masked by parked cars.



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There is an opportunity for an environmental improvement scheme around the garages just adjacent to the well, and the re-routing of overhead cables into underground ducts constructed when the opes were re-cobbled.

It is not known what use the historic building and yard on Brewery Lane had, but it is possibly associated with the former brewery and grain storage activity in this area. The building and its environs are pre 1907 and of historic interest, but are in a poor condition and underused and would merit repair and assessment for appropriate new uses.

Building and yard on Brewery Lane Many of the high boundary walls along lanes and opes in the area are currently in need of repair. They are an important element of the distinctiveness and historic character of this area and are worthy of attention to ensure that they are not lost through neglect.

Slate –topped wall in need of repair

5: Post medieval urban expansion - Wendron Street • Improve Flora Centre frontage

• Identify new uses for Passmore Edwards centre

• Review Conservation Area

• Minor streetscape improvements

• Sensitive redevelopment of Grammar school site

The Flora Centre – the former Baptist Chapel – is a landmark building on a prominent site. Repair and replacement of the present modern additions to the building’s front elevation with a structure more appropriate in style, material and scale, would enhance the historic character of both the building and this portion of the street and support current efforts to increase activity levels and community benefit from the Centre.

The Flora Centre

The Passmore Edwards Community Centre in Penrose Road whilst popular and well used does not fill the building to capacity. The local authority has proposed that the centre is relocated and new uses introduced to create higher occupancies. This provides an opportunity to increase the use of this landmark building.



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The kennels along Penrose Road are in need of some attention and repair.

The potential development site on Shute Hill, now occupied by lock-up garages, requires sensitive treatment. It is the site of a former workhouse and schoolyard (and likely to be of significant archaeological interest on this account) and also forms part of the immediate setting for the former prison. The latter and the boundary walls around the site are listed (Grade II). The schoolyard part of the site is suitable for redevelopment as the garages are now very run down and detract from the excellent visual qualities presented by the historic fabric. Alterations to the Conservation Area boundary along Godolphin Road towards the bypass at Clodgey Lane would, in conjunction with other planning measures (for example, an Article 4 direction and/or local design guidance), provide a clearer framework for development in this area. This should not only improve the quality of new build and reduce uncertainty for developers but also primarily ensure the preservation or enhancement of the character of this area of significant historic interest.

The former grammar school site also offers an opportunity for well-designed redevelopment. New build here could reinstate the historic building line, hard up to the pavement thus enhancing a key characteristic of the area and the town as a whole.

Car park/Grammar School site Wendron Street

Some minor streetscape works could also enhance the area. One example is the replacement of the handrail on Shute Hill – currently joined metal pipes – with something more appropriate to the quality of the historic area. The fine decorated granite pavement slabs on the north side of the street close to the Market Place should be carefully maintained and retained in any future resurfacing work in the area.

6: Post medieval urban expansion - Meneage Street • Traffic reduction

• Repair and reinstatement scheme for historic buildings and shopfronts

• Review Conservation Area

• Reduce street clutter & re-assert historic axis

Meneage Street is designated in the Local Plan as a Town Centre Environmental Enhancement Area, with proposals to reduce traffic flows and facilitate pedestrian movement. Reduction of the present levels of congestion, noise, air pollution and difficulties in crossing between pavements would be a significant improvement for the major commercial area of the town. Meneage Street is closed come evenings in the run up to Christmas with some success, reducing congestion and improving pedestrian circulation. However any scheme in this street should take into account the need for servicing the commercial premises.

The street has many fine buildings and in particular a collection of historic shopfronts of particular quality. There is an opportunity for a scheme to support repairs and reinstatement of architectural details here, to enhance the strong historic character of the street.



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Windows and shopfronts Meneage Street

The current Conservation Area stops just short of the former Meneage Hospital. Although Trengrouse Way interrupts the continuity of the street at this point there is potential for extending the Conservation Area further south to incorporate the significant area of good historic buildings of at least local interest and value.

The historic significance of Meneage Street as a major route into Helston has been obscured by its intersections with both Trengrouse Way and Furry Way and direction of traffic flows along these roads. These changes are beneficial in environmental terms but it would be a positive move if the substantial provision of traffic management features and signage could be assessed with the aim of minimising the level of street clutter and re-asserting the significance of the historic route.

7: Post medieval expansion Meneage Road • Maintain the green open space

• Reduce street clutter

As a continuation of the previous character area, many of the regeneration opportunities are very similar. Attention to the present levels of congestion, on-street parking and traffic flows as part of a co-ordinated plan would help to maintain and improve this thoroughfare through an otherwise residential area. The areas of green space provided by the

grass verges in front of the houses and the cemetery should be retained as they provide a positive visual link between Helston town and its rural hinterland.

8: River valley and St John’s • Create regeneration masterplan for

area. • Enhance gateway facilities • Review Conservation Area boundary.

This character area incorporates much of the land likely to be available for development within Helston’s historic extent. Given this range of factors, regeneration planning for the area as a whole would benefit from a detailed assessment resulting in a comprehensive development brief. This would identify potential development sites and significant constraints, including archaeological potential and contaminated land, as well as outlining landscape and environmental improvements to enhance the area’s gateway function and opportunities for improved links across the by-pass and through the area to the Coronation Lake amenity area, Penrose, Loe Pool and South West Coast Path.

There is an opportunity to devise a strategy for replanting trees around Coronation Lake to ensure the continuity of this green public open space and amenity.

View from Cattle market towards Penrose



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The car park on the former cattle market site is currently relatively little used but could provide a convenient access point for visitors to the town, for example as a location for a park and walk/ride scheme. For able-bodied visitors the steps to the Bowling Green area provide an intriguing and reasonably easy route to the historic centre. There is potential for emphasising distinctive historic features along this route (for example, the stone pillars marking the foot of the steps) and for replacing the hand rails in a more appropriate style.

The links between Helston and Loe Bar and Porthleven could be maximised by

developing a cycle route from Helston town centre, through this Character Area and through the Penrose Estate.

The car park has features relating to its former use as a cattle market which could also be emphasised and there is potential for appropriate signposting of the routes to the town centre and Lower Green and for interpretation. The car park would need to be signposted for approaching traffic as an access point to the historic town.

The St John’s/Sithney Old Road area merits consideration for inclusion within Helston’s Conservation Area

Views from Penrose

towards Cattle Market


December 2002 Sources 54

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December 2002 Sources 55

Strategic, Policy and Programme Documents Cornwall County Council and Kerrier District Council n.d. Integrated Rural Strategy for

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Aerial photographs (verticals 1946, 1963; obliques c 1988 - 2002)