A conservation area is an area of special architectural or historical interest or is desirable to protect or enhance.
Conservation areas protect historic buildings, gardens, trees, spaces and views so that area can then be passed on to future generations and protected from inappropriate development or demolition. More about conservation areas from Historic England.
Locations of conservation areas
There are many conservation areas in the borough of Rochdale.
List of conservation areas with maps and appraisals
Living in a conservation area
Here are some of the ways living in or owning a property in a conservation area might affect you:
- Planning permission - if you're planning to make changes to your property and it's in a conservation area then you may need to apply for planning permission.
- A sense of pride - conservation areas bring people together through pride and care of our local environment.
- Financial assistance - from time to time, financial assistance may be available for the upkeep of buildings and public spaces in the area. Conservation area status may help support any funding applications you make.
Article 4 Directions
An Article 4 Direction may be made by the Local Planning Authority to remove certain permitted development rights, including for building operations or changes of use. An Article 4 Direction generally restricts work you can normally do without planning permission, such as replacing a door or window or altering gutters and downpipes. Article 4 directions are commonly, but not always, used in designated conservation areas as a tool to protect historic fabric or to ensure that special architectural interest is preserved. Where an article 4 direction is in place, this means a planning application is will be required for development that would otherwise have been ‘permitted development’.
An Article 4 Direction does not necessarily prevent the development to which it applies, but instead requires that planning permission is first obtained from the Local Planning Authority for that development.
Article 4(1) of the The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015 makes provision for the withdrawal of certain permitted development rights, if there is a justification for both its purpose and extent.
The Local Planning Authority may from time to time consider that an Article 4 Direction is appropriate in certain defined geographical locations, without public representation having been received.
Any public requests for an Article 4 Direction in an area should be submitted, with reasoned justification, by email to conservationand.design@rochdale.gov.uk.
Following on from receipt of any submission, the Local Planning Authority will review the case against national policy requirements and local objectives and reach a decision on the necessity and benefits of a potential Article 4 Direction being made.
There will generally be very few circumstances locally where making an Article 4 Direction is considered to be appropriate given the existing tools available to guide satisfactory development, including conservation area designations. However, each individual request will be judged on its own merits.
Where an Article 4 Direction may be considered appropriate, a report will be presented to both the relevant Township Committee and the Planning & Licencing Committee for approval.