The Management of High Barnet Conservation Area

Background

1. The historic town of High Barnet has two conservation areas, Monken Hadley and Wood Street which between them include the northern and southern parts of the High Street respectively. In our 2008 survey of residents we found that 71% of respondents did not realise that any part of the High Street was in a conservation area, and of those who did 81% felt the properties did not have the appearance of a conservation area. Within these figures there was some approval for the appearance of the conservation area at the northern end of the High St., but almost no approval for the appearance of the southern stretch. In this paper we have focused on the south of the High Street that is included in the Wood Street conservation area.

2. The iconic image of High Barnet is the view looking up the High Street towards the Church, distinguished by the imposing presence of the Church flanked by two curving rows of shops and pubs as they follow the split in the road. Being protected by conservation area status, it should be expected that these buildings would reflect the historic importance of the area. Sadly, this is far from the case. Although some buildings have retained an appearance that is in keeping with how the area ought to look, e.g. The Mitre and The Bull, the overall appearance is of modern shop fronts no different from any other high street around the country that lacks any distinguishing architectural or historic value. Although the council has on occasions correctly dealt with applications to alter historic frontages (see para 10) we regret to say that overall the council oversight of this conservation area has been a dismal failure

A strategy for a thriving town centre

3. Our concerns extend beyond just that of preserving the historic character of the town. Town centres everywhere are struggling in the face of out-of-town shopping and the internet. To survive, small town centres need to have a clear strategy defining how they wish to pitch their appeal and the type of shoppers they are seeking to attract. More and more down-market shops selling cheap and cheerful goods is not going to do much for the local economy and will eventually deter many shoppers. It is the perception of many people living in the area that this has been the direction of travel for our High Street, characterised by a slow but inexorable decline. On previous occasions we have drawn attention to the absence of any vision or a coherent strategy on the part of the council for the future of High Barnet town centre.

4. Conservation is one area where the council can, at little cost, contribute to the well-being of the High St. High Barnet has the potential to offer an appealing high street of charming buildings reflecting the historic nature of the town. In conjunction with the widely admired Spires, this could attract quality shops which in turn would attract shoppers with money to spend. Contrast High Barnet with, say, Hertford and Epping, which are local examples of well-managed conservation areas going hand in hand with a thriving shopping centre, and where the local councils believe well-designed shop fronts will encourage investment and spending which benefit all the traders in their areas.

Getting it wrong

5. As examples of the way in which the Council has badly managed this conservation area we would point out four frontages which we suggest are not only inappropriate, but are diametrically opposed to the Council’s own guidelines on shop fronts in conservation areas published as Design Guidance Notes. In doing this we are of course making no judgments on the shops themselves or the products they sell, our sole concern is the inappropriate development which the Council has allowed to go through.

6. It is the particularly ghastly changes at the new business at 47 High St., which recently opened at what was the Crown & Anchor pub, that finally prompted us to produce this submission. The beautiful leaded lights have been removed and a middle section of the window has been extended to ground level, getting rid of the stallrisers. The first floor level indicates how attractive the original frontage was. From a lay person’s perspective, it is criminal that the leaded lights were taken out to be replaced by large single-pane windows. This goes against the very policy published in Barnet’s own guidance, which states, "Glazing bars [or leaded lights] ... are essential in most cases to the design and architectural character of the building. Their removal often changes its character." (A security grille has also been attached and this is closed at night, creating a shop front which looks dead and bleak, though we understand this was not part of the planning approval, and at our urging this aspect is being investigated by Enforcement).

7. Another particular horror of recent times is Chicken Cottage, though now closed. When it first applied for planning permission again no attempt was made to follow the Council’s own guidance on what a shop front in a conservation area should look like. This particular building is in the most sensitive part of the High Street that is in the conservation area, being so near the church, and is the ground floor of what used to be the Barnet Assembly Rooms. In particular there was no attempt to introduce stallrisers which are specifically mentioned in the Council’s own guidance as adding character to a shop front, and the large bright red signboard caused universal consternation in the town when it first appeared.

8. The Council’s own guidance note advises that the colours used "are harmonious with the remainder of the buildings and the street" and that "greens, blacks and browns are appropriate for traditional shop fronts and historic areas.... vibrant and garish colours are inappropriate in many areas". At Snappy Snaps (81 High Street).a garish mustard yellow has been allowed to cover the entire shop front - compare this to the delightful frontage of the adjoining Victoria Bakery. A similar inappropriate use of colour is found at Paddy Power (62 High St) where the whole shop front is covered in a garish green finish. These shops both belong to large chains and the finish reflects their standard corporate image. However there are many instances where corporate colours are not used or restrained, for example Snappy Snaps in Welwyn Garden City has yellow in an accent colour only. What we see here is a failure of the council to pay any regard to its own guidelines, or an unwillingness to make the effort to challenge large corporate retailers.

9. The fact that the owners at 47 High St felt able to add a grill without permission indicates the low esteem in which the conservation area is held. Indeed many property owners may be as unaware as the general public of the status of the area, or assume that poor enforcement means it is o.k. to ignore the restrictions. The recent addition of a mock Elizabethan finish to the frontage of After Office Hours without any reference to the council is a further indication of the problem.

10. In fairness, we should add that the council’s record has not been one of complete failure. Good sense prevailed with 85 High Street where the original application was to put in full-length windows and take out the original smaller windows and stall risers of the old Lloyd’s Bank building. The Council refused this and we think a happy medium has been struck between good window displays and conserving a fine old shop front. However this does raise the question as to why the property owner considered in the first place that requesting such changes might be acceptable.

Getting it right

11. We are not asking for any new policy to be formed, with the Council having to spend hours determining what its policy should be. We are simply asking that the existing guidelines are adhered to so that Barnet has attractive shop fronts appropriate to its historic character, which in turn will hopefully attract thriving and profitable businesses. To quote once again from the Council’s own guidelines on shop fronts in conservation areas, "Inappropriate and ill-designed shop fronts can downgrade a shopping centre. An attractive centre is more likely to be a profitable shopping centre."

12. Given the importance of this conservation area to the well-being of the town we suggest that the Area Planning Committee should take a much stronger line to ensure that robust consideration is given to applications and that guidelines are strictly adhered to. The policy is in place, we merely ask that the council acknowledges the failures of the past and ensures that matters are put right for the future.

Barnet Residents Association

January 2009