stoneygate newsletter april 2012 conservation area society ......2012/04/03 · along with the...

SCAS Newsletter Contact: Nick Knight [[email protected]] with your ideas

Conservation Area Society (SCAS)

Newsletter April 2012 Stoneygate

SCAS Chair: David Oldershaw SCAS Website: www.stoneygateconservation.org

Newsletter: Nita Foale, Nick Knight Printed by: AVS-Print, University of Leicester

This magnificent semi-detached Victorian house occupies a prominent site on the corner of Stoneygate and Albert Roads. It was built in 1897 by Stockdale Harrison, a well-known Leicester architect who was President of the Leicestershire and Rutland Society of Architects and whose other designs included Spinney Hill Park lodge and the Abbey Pumping Station, now a museum.

Until recently it was the family home of Miss Avril Stewart Deacon who had lived there with her parents since the 1940s and inherited it on the death of her mother in 1970. She had it divided into two parts, creating a ground floor flat which she rented out whilst she continued to live on the first and second floors. Miss Stewart Deacon died in August 2009 aged 80.

When the two enormous boundary willow trees were cut back to reveal its previously hidden brick façade, we suspected that a new chapter in its long life story was beginning. We visited in February and found ourselves in the middle of an inspiring renovation project. The new owners, a professional couple, have set themselves the ambitious goal of reconverting the house and transforming it into a twenty-first century home which combines meticulous attention to historical and architectural detail with high-spec modern interior design. Read more inside.

STOCKDALE HOUSE: A Labour of Love


Stockdale House: A Labour of Love (continued)

A comprehensive programme of works in three phases has been planned. Significant progress has already been made, with the first phase being completed last December.

The Exterior Outside, work started from the top. The roof was completely stripped, felted, battened and the original clay `Rosemary’ tiles relaid (about two-thirds had to be replaced). There had been some water damage upstairs which was traced to a leaking roof valley and consequently this had to be completely renewed. Whilst the scaffolding was up, the owners decided to make the most of it and themselves stripped back all the exterior woodwork, replacing damaged timber and then finishing and repainting window frames, fascias and bargeboards. The latter had been a flamboyant royal blue, a colour which had also been used on the exterior masonry of the upper storey and all gates and doors and perhaps reflected Miss Stewart Deacon’s celebrated joie de vivre! The new owners have opted for a more sober gloss black for the timber and white for the masonry.

The Interior The entire house was insulated, rewired and replumbed and many internal walls replastered. A new boiler and integrated central heating system were installed together with 18 new cast iron radiators whose design suits the period character of the house. The ground floor has now been transformed and consists of a spacious and highly functional modern kitchen, an elegant dining room and a sitting room. The first-floor bathroom has been enlarged and completely refitted. The standard of

renovation is outstanding throughout. The sliding sash windows, many of which were `painted shut’ have all been freed, stripped, refurbished and fitted with ingenious brush draughtproofing which also makes for a smoother action. The sitting room fireplace has been reconditioned by Heritage Fireplaces (St. Nicholas’s Circle) and now looks as it must have one hundred years ago when the house was first built. Beautifully decorated leaded glass entrance hall door panels have all survived.

On the upper floors where work is yet to be done, the potential is obvious. The staircase is beautifully proportioned (and easy to climb!) with both floors having spacious landings. Each has two bedrooms and space for comfortably-sized bathrooms and there is an additional room on the first floor which may serve as an office or study in the future. The views from the top floor are extensive and,

in most directions, the very best the Conservation Area can offer. Phase 2 of the owners’ renovation plan covers the refurbishment of the first floor, and the landscaping and boundaries of the property. Phase 3, which will be the easy one, the refurbishment of the top floor. The cellar, ingeniously opened up by the removal of an external wall to provide a drive-in garage in the 1970s, will not need any further work. All in all, this is a wonderful house that is being upgraded and modernised to a very high standard without compromising its architectural integrity. It has everything; an impressive facade, lovely spacious halls and rooms with light flooding in from all sides; not too much ceiling height (unlike many houses of the period); great urban views with plenty of greenery; elegant, stylish furniture and fittings and an underground garage.


The Stoneygate Festival The Stoneygate Festival, hosted by the Stoneygate Baptist Church on Saturday March 24th provided another first for the area. Along with the impressive array of local craft and food stalls, there were activities for children, pampering and taster reflexology sessions for adults and a relaxing background of live music from the church young people’s band and singers and a couple of very fine pianists. SCAS Chair David Oldershaw gave a short talk on `Conservation or Preservation?’ in the morning while Richard Gill spoke on `The Character of Stoneygate’ in the afternoon. David, Tim, Nita, Jenny and Nick manned the SCAS stand, explaining what the Society does and recruiting several new members. Our thanks to minister Peter Shepherd for inviting us to take part in a very enjoyable and worthwhile day, which we hope may become a regular event in the Stoneygate year.

There only remains the question of the fire escape fitted to the Albert Road elevations to comply with 1970s fire regulations – such an eye sore but useful, nonetheless. And there is always the possibility that without this substantial structure, the house might itself subside. Even the owners themselves are taking their time in deciding its fate. We await developments with interest. The owners have kept a record of their adventures, from the eye-opening discoveries of the first viewing through the emotional ups and downs of purchase and completion to the practical nitty gritty of restoring a Victorian home. www.stockdalehouse.blogspot.co.uk

Stoneygate Spring Fair A local food & drink festival

in honour of the Diamond Jubilee Sunday, 3rd June 10:00am - 5:00pm

Allandale Road & Francis Street, Stoneygate, Leicester, LE2 2BE Fresh & quality produce

by local people & producers to taste and buy!

Everybody welcome! Free entry

Vendors and enquiries to: [email protected]

http://www.stockdalehouse.blogspot.co.uk/


PROFILE: Elizabeth Amias—Historical Detective

How many of us have made a resolution to one day create a really detailed family tree or to discover the previous ownership and history of the old house we’re lucky enough to live in? These are the sort of things that make fascinating reality TV programmes but that few of us, in our busy lives, ever get around to doing ourselves. The guest speaker at this year’s AGM can help us with both. Clarendon Park resident and historian Elizabeth Amias will research the history of your family, your home or even your street. She will be telling us all about it and sharing some of the insights into Victorian daily life that her searches have revealed and which you can find on her wonderful Clarendon Park historical `blog’ (or web log) at www.yourhistories.com.

Are you from Leicester or did you move here? And if so, what attracted you? I was brought up in Northampton and Rugby before going to University in Cardiff. I first moved here in 1998 to study for an MA in Museum Studies at the University of Leicester. I then lived in Kent for a few years before returning to settle here in 2005 - partly because I liked it and partly because my husband and I wanted to have children and it’s a lot cheaper to do that here than in Kent!

Have you always been interested in the past? Always. As a small child I used to draw endless pictures of ladies in crinolines and read historical fiction. I started researching my family history aged 14. The Victorian period particularly fascinated me and still does, as well as the ways in which people lived.

Is history a full-time job for you? I certainly never stop thinking about it! I work part-time fundraising for Leicester Cathedral and manage to spend quite a lot of my time there thinking about history and heritage in one way or another. Apart from that, my history work and hobbies are very much intertwined so I spend most of my time doing something history-related.

Do you work alone? Mostly, yes, but I am thinking of applying for a grant to create a Clarendon Park exhibition, which would mean working with a lot of other people.

What made you decide to write a historical blog, rather than – say -a book? I can be more chatty in a blog than I could be in a book. I do plan to write a book when my children are a little older but the blog suits me better at the minute. It’s instant and breaks down the work into

achievable chunks so I can dip in and out of it as my workload permits.

Why do you focus on the Clarendon Park area? Mostly because I live here and see the evidence of the past around me all the time, which inspires me. I love the mixture of fairly grand and very humble housing, the shops and businesses and the fact that, relatively speaking, the appearance of the area has not changed dramatically. I love what I call `small stories’, little snippets from the lives of ordinary people which would never be made public again. Clarendon Park is full of them…and because it is mostly a Victorian area I can indulge my interests.

Do you get many responses from readers? Yes – lots! I love it when people who live in a house that I’ve mentioned on the blog get in touch to say that they were interested to read about what happened there in the past.

http://www.yourhistories.com/


Do you have a favourite historical period? Around 1880-1918. Do you think that people are becoming more or less interested in history? Definitely more interested. I think that the media and museums have finally cottoned on to the fact that people are interested by what surrounds them and by human stories rather than details of politics and economics and who made the best vases etc – all of which are important, but for people to become in-terested they often need a sense of context and a scale they can relate to. Where do you think you’ll go from here? Good question! I would like to establish a Clarendon Park local history society, a collection of archive material and objects, to put on exhibitions….. and to write that book!

Heritage Action Plan for Leicester

Stoneygate History & Heritage Projects

The Leicester Heritage Partnership (LHP) set up by the City Mayor last July has now met three times. Discussion has focussed on a `Heritage Action Plan’ drawn up by the City Council Conservation Team which identifies its tasks for the next two years and highlights its priorities.

Safeguarding and finding new uses for the City’s threatened historical buildings will be at the top of the list, particularly those at greatest risk such as the Grade Two listed Donisthorpe Mill (Leicester’s oldest) and the Grade Two star listed HSBC Bank on Granby Street (probably Leicester’s finest –see left).

We are assured that residential Conservation Areas like Stoneygate will not be neglected and that officers will, for instance, continue to provide advice to owners and prospective buyers of historical properties. SCAS has commented in detail and expressed the hope that work to extend the Conservation Area (in Southernhay and Holmfield Roads), update the Character Appaisal and create new conservation areas in South Knighton and Portland Towers will not be delayed indefinitely.

Friendly co-operation between LHP partners has had a number of unexpected benefits. One has been the success of a bid by Dr Rebecca Madgin of Leicester University’s Centre for Urban History to secure grant funding from the Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC) `Connected Communities’ Programme. The Programme is designed to help establish working relationships between professional academic researchers and local community heritage/history groups such as ourselves. SCAS was one of 18 groups who supported Rebecca’s bid and we look forward to working with her and her colleagues. The first step will be to organise two Open Days in May or June to showcase the work of everyone involved. This will, hopefully, then lead to the development of a variety of joint-projects, part- or wholly-funded by further small grants. There are a wide range of possibilities ranging from the publication of leaflets, books and guides to the organisation of school or adult learning activities, the creation of history trails and even the production of new digital media applications. We are currently considering what sort of Stoneygate history or heritage project we might develop. If any of you have any suggestions, please e-mail Committee member Nick Knight or, better still, have a chat with Nick at the SCAS AGM.


Planning Matters (December 2011 to March 2012)

The application to renew lapsed planning permission to build a large

modern house on land between Nos10 and 12 Woodland Avenue was withdrawn in November. We support planning officers in recommending refusal and welcome their comments that the scale and design would not respect the style and character of adjacent properties and would have an adverse appearance on the street and the Conservation Area generally. Proposals to convert the semi-detached Victorian property at 3 Alexandra

Road into 5 one-bed flats have been amended. Front and rear gardens will not be paved over for car standing as originally planned, timber sliding sash front windows will all be retained and there will be no other external alterations. We are relieved but still have outstanding concerns. One-bed flats can - and do - make a positive contribution to East Stoneygate but there is a risk that they will so outnumber family homes and larger apartments that community balance suffers. The Council’s

Core Strategy Policy 6 (Housing Strategy) states that `conversion of large houses will be resisted where it (sic) would still be appropriate for family use and meet an identified need’. Why, we wonder, was it not even mentioned by the officer who considered this application?

Landscaping work begun without the necessary planning consent has, once again, seen the demolition of a front boundary wall and the wholesale removal of shrubs and front garden, this time in Knighton Road. While it’s hard to believe that new owners (or their agents) were not made aware of the Article 4 direction, it is possible. Purchasing solicitors may have been less than diligent in carrying out searches; estate agents may have been less than candid in their descriptions. One of the things that makes Stoneygate attractive to old and new residents alike is the special character of its individual properties and streets. Preserving this helps maintain both residential amenity and property values. This year SCAS will be working with local property professionals to get this message across more clearly.

A formal application was finally submitted and we were expecting planners to require the reinstatement of the capped dwarf wall which the house shares with neighbouring 1930s art deco style properties and which is a unifying feature of the streetscene. Instead, they have given permission for a taller modern-style wall with piers and railings. The designs have been amended slightly but we are both puzzled and disappointed. We hope that a replanted front boundary hedge (also a characteristic feature of the streetscene) will mitigate a frontage which may otherwise detract from the charm and subtlety of the house.

Following the withdrawal of an earlier application to enlarge 2 Southernhay Road, consent was given for a single-storey rear extension and `Juliet’ balcony and for an increase in the space dedicated to business use. Planners seemed unworried that previous space restrictions had been ignored. We were surprised by this

but pleased by their recognition of our concerns that incremental alterations could, over time, effectively convert a residential property into a de facto business premises. Two new buildings are nearing completion. The modern family home built on the site of a demolished 1950s bungalow at 48 Knighton Drive has, as we had hoped, fitted neatly into the streetscene. The gardens have been nicely landscaped and we agree with planners that the property makes a more positive contribution to the conservation area than its predecessor. 48 Knighton Drive

12 Woodland Avenue

5 Knighton Road


Work on the new Kia Motors showroom at 230 London Road has moved forward very quickly and will soon be complete. We are impressed by the striking modern design which echoes the original 1920s building and fits into its location well. For the third time, the owner’s appeal against planners’ refusal to allow the conversion of a rear outbuilding at 16

Knighton Road into a flat has been dismissed.

Finally, permission has been granted to divide the large detached family home at 52 Knighton Road into two separate dwellings. The new house will have a Knighton Drive address, a separate access and car parking for a single vehicle. A new boundary fence will also be added. 52 Knighton Road

We are delighted that City Council leaders have approved Planning, Leisure and Sport budgets for 2011/12 and 2013/14 which either maintain or increase existing levels of expenditure on Development Control, Planning Enforcement and Building and Nature Conservation. This has been done despite a substantially reduced grant from central government.

A budget statement said that `services to handle planning applications efficiently are being protected so we can support business growth and jobs as well as encourage good quality development. Our planning enforcement team, which safeguards the environment of local neighbourhoods, will also be protected'`

It added that `Leicester is an ancient city with an important place in history and we want to promote understanding and increase pride in its built and natural environment’. Two new specialists in building and nature conservation will be recruited, modest additional funding provided to help preserve protected trees and £20,000 more invested each year in grounds maintenance, events and activities at Leicester Castle, the Motte and the surrounding area.

Heritage and Good Planning Essential to Growth

SCAS Updates Website and Joins the Twittersphere

Since June last year SCAS has benefited from the energy and expertise of new committee member Tim Savage who has been helping vet planning applications and has also updated the website, adding a page of `useful links’ to online City Council resources and several local history sites. Some might say that one of Tim’s degrees (in Ancient History) has prepared him perfectly for committee membership. We admit it—our approach to new `social media’ is cautious. But we are getting there. Tim’s latest innovation has been to set up a Twitter account. Tweet him @ StoneygateCASoc.

Saturday 5th May 2012 at 10.30am

Medieval Streets - A Guided Walk by Stuart Bailey (from the corner of High Street and Highcross Street)

Join us on an exploration of the streets of Medieval Leicester in the area bounded by High Street, the Market Place, Friar Lane and Southgate Street. Discover their old names and see where medieval buildings still lurk. Visit three timbered halls - find out what the ancient town really looked like.

Advance booking essential from the Tourist Info Office (cash/card) or to: Stuart Bailey,48 Meadow Avenue, Loughborough LE11 1JT.

£3.00 Cheques payable to: Leicester Civic Society

Rear of Roger Wygston’s House, Applegate

230 London Road


I/we wish to maintain my/our membership /become a member of SCAS and enclose a cheque for £5 (per household per year) as from April 1st 2012 Name:……………………………………………………………………………………………..............

Address:.………………………………………………………….................Postcode…………………

Contact Phone: ......................................................... email.........................................................................

Send to: Jenny Westmoreland, Membership Secretary, 358 Victoria Park Road, LE2 1XF Phone: 2705828 email: [email protected]

Membership & Committee News.

For the last two years we have been tantalizingly close to reaching a new milestone in the Society’s history. We are delighted to be able to begin 2012/13 by announcing that we have finally made it! Many thanks to all of you - individuals, couples and families - who have helped SCAS membership to grow to 150 for the first time ever. This is tremendously encouraging to the SCAS committee and is, we believe, proof that, while other things may seem increasingly uncertain, our heritage and historical buildings remain a much-cherished and much-valued element of our community life. The passing of such a historical milestone is a fitting time to celebrate the contribution to the Society of our Treasurer, Canon Henry Evans who has told us that he does not intend to stand for re-election at this year’s AGM. Henry has looked after our finances for over 15 years and his good stewardship and wise counsel have been two of the factors that have helped the Society to grow. We hope you’ll join us in thanking Henry for his sterling service and in wishing him well for the future. He assures us that he will be keeping us his SCAS membership and we hope to see him at SCAS events from time to time. Henry will be a hard act to follow but cometh the hour, cometh the man. One of our newest committee members, Arthur Stafford, has already risen to the challenge and indicated his willingness to stand for election as Treasurer in May.

SCAS Annual General Meeting

The SCAS AGM will take place on

Wednesday May 16th at 7.30pm at the Octagon Room

St John’s Church, Clarendon Park Road

Programme will include:

Review of the year’s conservation activities Elections to the Committee

Guest Speaker:

Elizabeth Amias, Local Historian

and `blogger’ will speak on the subject of:

“Small Stories of Clarendon Park”

This is an open meeting — non-members are welcome

Refreshments will be available

stoneygate newsletter april 2012 conservation area society ......2012/04/03 · along with the...

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