Character and heritage of three Hackney locations protected thanks to new Conservation Area status
The built heritage and architectural character of three Hackney locations have been granted further protection through the planning system.
Conservation Areas in Beck Road, Pitfield Street and Well Street have been designated. This follows a wide ranging public consultation in all three areas and the formal approval at the Council’s Cabinet meeting last week (July 19).
To ensure the architectural character that gives these streets their unique identity is preserved for future generations, such as the protection of original windows, doors and chimney stacks, the Council is also seeking an Article 4 Direction over the Beck Road and Well Street Conservation Areas. This will remove certain permitted development rights, ensuring that planning permission has to be sought if any changes are proposed to the buildings in the Conservation Area.
The designation of Beck Road, Pitfield Street and Well Street as Conservation Areas will ensure that their significant architectural character and there special built heritage is given the appropriate protection through the planning system.
In Hackney, the first four conservation areas were designated in 1969. They were for Clapton Square, Clapton Common, Clapton Pond and Clissold Park. There are now 35 conservation areas designated across the borough.
It is important that we recognise and celebrate through the planning process Hackney’s heritage and the positive contribution that good architecture can make to a neighbourhood. Conservation Areas are helpful designations which are not in place to stop all building in an area. They are designed to promote a high quality of development that enhances a local area and makes a profound contribution to enhancing the quality of life for local residents and businesses.
The Conservation Area in:
- Well Street is centred on an historic route connecting Mare Street and Homerton, which began as a small hamlet and grew in the 19th century. Since Victorian times, the area has been a centre for commercial and light industries and has a village-like character. Terraces of 19th century housing and shops remain to both the east and west sides of Well Street and a market continues to thrive, having first started operating in the 1850s
- Beck Road comprises an historic street of uniform, Victorian terraces, bisected by an elevated railway line. The street is a rare surviving example of late Victorian, two-storey terraces opening directly onto the street, which contain many of their original features
- Pitfield Street is a linear street with pockets of dense, historically layered urban grain and several landmark listed buildings. The area was first referenced in the 17th century and contains buildings from the Georgian and Victorian eras. It is bounded by large areas of post-war housing set within a townscape where greenery and street trees play an important role.
For more information on the borough’s conservation areas visit: hackney.gov.uk/conservation-areas.