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<DIV><SPAN class=843105818-16032007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2>Controls over the demolition of redundant church buildings raise
interesting issues and I must admit that I had to look up the answer to David's
question. </FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=843105818-16032007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=843105818-16032007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>It is
set out in the government advice note PPG15 (Planning Policy Guidance
- Planning & the Historic Environment). Paragraph 8.15 says that in
the case of Church of England churches, partly or totally demolishing a church
in pursuance of a Pastoral Measure is still exempt from listed building
control. However the Church Commissioners have agreed that where they want
to demolish a listed church in these circumstances they will ask the
Secretary or State if he wishes to hold a non-statutory public inquiry where
English Heritage, the local authority or any of the recognised amenity bodies
put forward reasoned objections. Interestingly this doesn't apply
to places of worship of any other denomination - the view taken
by the Courts is that a building cannot be considered to be in use as a place of
worship if it is totally demolished, so they would need consent to knock it down
if it's listed. </FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=843105818-16032007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=843105818-16032007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2>But paragraph 8.17 of PPG15 goes on to say that when a Church
of England building is no longer in regular ecclesiastical use, it is fully
subject to the normal listed building controls. This applies once the
declaration of redundancy under the Pastoral Measure comes into
operation. The same also applies to those churches vested in the
Churches Conservation Trust, even though church services are held in most of
them on an occasional basis. </FONT></SPAN><SPAN
class=843105818-16032007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>I have looked up
English Heritage's listing description for St John's Hanley and it describes it
as "now disused" so I would have thought that it is fairly clear that it is now
within the remit of the local planning authority.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=843105818-16032007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=843105818-16032007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>The
reason that St Johns is listed grade II* is because it uses cast iron structural
and decorative components, notably the gallery columns, the window frames and
the castellations. The church was built in 1788-90. It is thought
that these components are some of the earliest to have been used in any type of
building in Britain, only those at St James Liverpool of 1774-5 being identified
as earlier.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=843105818-16032007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=843105818-16032007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2>Contrary to what I expected the listing description does mention the
bells, which is unusual in the case of twentieth century ones:
</FONT></SPAN><SPAN class=843105818-16032007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2>"Bell chamber with peal of 10 bells, the original peal of 8 bells cast by
Edward Arnold of Leicester and installed in 1791, supplemented by two additions
in 1891, and all re-cast and rehung from a contemporary bellframe in
1923".</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=843105818-16032007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=843105818-16032007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>Peter
Rivet</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=843105818-16032007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=843105818-16032007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=843105818-16032007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=843105818-16032007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE>
<DIV class=OutlookMessageHeader dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Tahoma
size=2>-----Original Message-----<BR><B>From:</B>
bellhistorians@yahoogroups.com [mailto:bellhistorians@yahoogroups.com]<B>On
Behalf Of </B>David Bryant<BR><B>Sent:</B> 14 March 2007 21:33<BR><B>To:</B>
bellhistorians@yahoogroups.com<BR><B>Subject:</B> RE: [Bell Historians] Re: St
John's Church Hanley<BR><BR></FONT></DIV>
<DIV id=ygrp-text>
<P>"In reply to the comment by Giles Blundell - in fact it's the other
way<BR>round. Ecclesiastical exemption means that the Church of
England, the Roman<BR>Catholic Church and a few other denominations which are
considered to have<BR>adequate procedures in place for dealing with
alterations to places of<BR>worship don't need to apply for Listed Building
Consent. This means that<BR>the local planning authority doesn't have to
get involved in fonts, bells<BR>and other things that require a
Faculty. But churches still have to apply<BR>for planning
permission for external works, including alteration<WBR>s,<BR>extensions
and access ramps."<BR><BR>But as I understand it, the faculty procedure still
applies, rather than<BR>secular planning controls, under certain circumstances
if the building is no<BR>longer used as a church but still owned by the
diocese - hence my question<BR>about whether it has been
deconsecrated.<BR><BR>David <BR><BR>-- <BR>No virus found in this outgoing
message.<BR>Checked by AVG Free Edition.<BR>Version: 7.5.446 / Virus Database:
268.18.11/722 - Release Date: 14/03/2007<BR>15:38<BR><BR><BR></P></DIV><!--End group email --></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>