The Queen (on the application of Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England (known as Historic England)) v Milton Keynes Council
| Jurisdiction | England & Wales |
| Judge | Mr Justice Dove |
| Judgment Date | 30 July 2018 |
| Neutral Citation | [2018] EWHC 2007 (Admin) |
| Court | Queen's Bench Division (Administrative Court) |
| Docket Number | Case No: CO/462/2018 |
| Date | 30 July 2018 |
[2018] EWHC 2007 (Admin)
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE
QUEEN'S BENCH DIVISION
PLANNING COURT
Royal Courts of Justice
Strand, London, WC2A 2LL
Mr Justice Dove
Case No: CO/462/2018
and
Richard Harwood QC (instructed by Sharpe Pritchard LLP) for the Claimant
Alistair Mills (instructed by Legal Services Milton Keynes Council) for the Defendant
Reuben Taylor QC (instructed by Clyde and Co LLP) for the Interested Party
Hearing date: 23 rd May 2018
Judgment Approved
Background
In 1833 Robert Stephenson, having been appointed to survey the route with his father George, signed the contract to build a 112-mile railway from Camden Town to Birmingham which had been authorised by act of Parliament. The project, known as the London and Birmingham Railway (“L&BR”) was the first main railway line to London, and it has been contended was the largest piece of engineering to be undertaken in its day. The Act which authorised the construction of the L&BR contained a clause requiring that railway works be provided around the midpoint of the line so as to enable locomotives to be inspected and kept in good order during the journey. A large field called “Post Hill Ground” was selected for these works on the basis that it was near to the (then) Grand Junction Canal whose wharfing facilities could be used. Whilst there had been a medieval settlement close by, that village had been deserted by the middle of the 17 th century. There was therefore no settlement in this location prior to the coming of the railway. When the line opened in 1838 a temporary station was provided. Further land was purchased to enable the construction of permanent station and worker's housing in 1840.
By the mid 1840's it had become clear that there was a need for the railway companies to manufacture their own locomotives and in 1845 the first locomotive was built at the Wolverton Works. In 1846 the L&BR was amalgamated with other railway companies to form the London and North-Western Railway which established its principle engine works at Wolverton. Thereafter the town of Wolverton grew up around the railway works which were themselves prospering. The manufacture of railway carriages commenced in the 1870s and the main line was rerouted away from the works which continued to expand and prosper leading to the town of Wolverton doubling in size in the period running up to the First World War.
Amongst the legacies of the establishment of the railway, its works and the surrounding town of Wolverton are a collection of buildings on the Wolverton railway works site (“the Site”) of varying ages, some dating back to the mid-19 th century and several from the period of the flourishing and expansion of the works towards the end of the 19 th and early 20 th century. The use of the site as an operational railway works continues, and over the course of time has caused functional alterations to be made to buildings within the site.
In recognition of the site's historic significance on 4 th December 2001 the site formed part of an area designated as the Wolverton Conservation Area (“the Conservation Area”). The designation was accompanied by a statement of significance which was phrased in the following terms:
“STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE
1. The significance of Wolverton as an historic area derives from the following attributes:
1. Its location as a critical component of the world's earliest railway developments
2. The physical survival of some of its earliest built elements, including bridges and other structures built under Robert Stephenson's direction.
3. The survival of the pattern of development and range of buildings from its zenith of growth and production.
4. The portrayal of technological and social history represented in the buildings and layout of the town
5. The concentration of a number of industrial, public and religious buildings of special architectural and historic interest
6. The interest of a collection of building forms, functions and spaces which are unique in the region
7. The relationship of the town to part of the Grand Union Canal which runs through it
8. The archaeological potential to recover further evidence of Robert Stephenson's and other important early works.
9. The potential benefits to the physical character and life of the community which may be achieved through proactive conservation measures”
The statement went on to identify the prevailing uses and their influence in the following terms:
“Prevailing uses and their influence
12. The town can be defined in terms of the stark division between its inhabited and its Carriage Works sections and ancillary railway buildings. The inhabited part consists of houses representing a range of dates from the early 1800s to about 1910. Some limited building continued into the 1920s and 1930s. Later 20C development or redevelopment has made relatively little direct impact upon Wolverton and, in this respect, the town can be considered fortunate.
13. The railway company which built the town to serve the Works and railway buildings to the north and east, with their enclosing walls and embankments of military proportions, once determined virtually every aspect of life in the town. Employment is now diversified into other uses within some of the former works buildings, expanded industrial areas and commuter life styles, and the community is also more diverse in interests, religious and ethnic makeup and social groupings. These changes demonstrate how accommodating of new uses, lifestyles and technologies the old buildings can be, without necessitating change to their external face.”
The document went on to review the architectural interest of the Conservation Area and in particular noted as follows:
“18. Of particular importance is the site of line, stations, repair sheds and workshops for the first inter-city railway in the world. This was Robert Stephenson's London to Birmingham line. He began the first surveys in 1830, the Act of Parliament received William IV's royal assent on 6 May 1833 and the line was inaugurated on 17 September 1838 (one year only into the “Victorian” era). Wolverton's canal and railway heritage began during the late-Georgian era and continued through Victoria's long reign and into the mid-20C.”
In 2009 the defendant commissioned a review of the Conservation Area which was published in April 2009 under the name “The Wolverton Conservation Area Review” (the “Conservation Area Review”). The Conservation Area Review was commissioned in the light of changes since the Conservation Area's first designation and “pressure for development within and around Wolverton”. The review document was lengthier and provided greater detail than the original 2001 Statement of Significance. The Conservation Area review reassessed the definition of the special interest of the Conservation Area, defining its special interest so far as relevant to the present case as follows:
“Wolverton is characterised by its diverse mix of late nineteenth and early twentieth century terraced housing, industrial quarters, commercial areas and functional open spaces. There are active shopping and commercial frontages, busy with traffic and people, that contrast with the quieter residential streets and their distinctive, narrow, interconnecting back ways.
Whereas the streets are open to exploration, the industrial quarter is closed off and isolated from the town. Built on a much larger scale, the works built by the London and Birmingham Railway underpinned the economy and development of Wolverton from the middle of the nineteenth century until being significantly scaled down during the late 1970's and 1980's. In their heyday the works were nationally renowned in a similar way to those of Crewe and Swindon. A collection of important buildings and structures from this period still survives in sufficient numbers to convey the historic scale and cohesiveness of the site's functions, processes and purpose.
The railway works are abruptly divided from the commercial and residential areas by an imposing boundary wall that runs along Stratford Road. The effect is to emphasise the separation of industrial activity from domestic life. This abrupt division of function contrasts with other types of industry where the gradual growth of a specialist trade mixed factories and houses together (shoemaking in Northampton or Birmingham's Jewellery Quarter for example).”
Against the background of this broad definition of the special interest of the Conservation Area the Conservation Area review went on to examine within its character assessment the qualities of the site described for the purposes of that document as “The Works”. In particular the document provided as follows:
“ 2.3.25 Although from outside the works are largely hidden from view, once inside, their size and complexity is impressive. Whilst this vastness once again prevents the whole site being seen from a single vantage point, even from within the site, there are long east – west linear views, enhanced by the receding perspectives of the railway tracks, that very effectively convey an impression of the works' extent. As such the buildings that survive remain noteworthy statements of Victorian industrial endeavour.
2.3.26 Towards the east of the site the derelict or semi derelict buildings and their environs evoke a sense of functional, harsh, unkempt, bleakness. These cavernous structures are comparatively low in height in relation to their length. Whilst unadorned architecturally, their scale nonetheless imbues them with a monumental quality; a quality accentuated by the rhythmic regularity of large window openings and their...
To continue reading
Request your trial