The Coach House, 21 Sion Hill, Lansdown, Bath, Bath and North-East Somerset, BA1 2UL.
Exterior refurbishment of building to include installation of photo voltaic panels to the roof and replacing garage door. Internal alterations and improvements to insulation.
The proposal site is located within the World Heritage Site and the Bath-city wide conservation area.
It appears that the Local Planning Authority (LPA) considers that the subject dwelling (No. 21), is ‘curtilage listed’ as per the provisions of 1(5) (b) of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990.
No. 20 Sion Hill, the property to the north, is included on the National Heritage List for England at Grade II (list entry number: 1394926).
A review of historic maps suggest that the coach house was extended by approximately 50% in the latter half of the twentieth century. The Design, Access and Heritage Statement, states that the coach house was converted in the 1960s and updated in the 1990s and 2000s.
For clarity, the following comments are limited to the proposed photo voltaic panels (PVs) and insulation.
The scheme proposes “to improve the thermal value by installing insulated bay shaped wall under window, rather than cantilevered cill’ (drawing 1052 2100). The west elevation has been much compromised and the stone to be used will match the existing, so in principle this does not appear to harm the significance of the building.
Based on google street view 2012 (the officer will of course benefit from the opportunity of a site visit), though the building has been much altered including via the raising of the roof. It maintains legible elements of its origins as an ancillary building across those aspects that are visible in the street scene. The question of the impact on functionality aside – if the trees are still in situ – the addition of PVs to the southern roof slope is likely to be incongruous.
Further additions to the roof of the coach house in the form of PVs, may detract from the setting of the principal dwelling (No. 20) by further eroding of what remains of the legibility of the simple/functional/ancillary nature of the coach house. Again, the officer will benefit from a site visit.