East Suffolk Council

Non-designated heritage assets

Identification of non-designated heritage assets

A heritage asset is defined by the Government’s National Planning Policy Framework as a building, monument, site, place, area or landscape identified as having a degree of significance meriting consideration in planning decisions because of its heritage interest.

Heritage assets include those that are designated such as listed buildings, conservation areas and scheduled monuments; and those that are non-designated, that is ones identified by the local planning authority as having local interest.

The Government’s National Planning Practice Guidance states that, in the case of buildings, the significance of non-designated heritage assets should, ideally, be judged against the local planning authority’s published criteria. Significance is the value of a heritage asset to this and future generations because of its heritage interest that can be archaeological, architectural, artistic or historic.

The council, as local planning authority, is still free to identify any other kind of non-designated heritage asset

Criteria for identification of non-designated heritage assets that are buildings

Development proposals affecting an identified non-designated heritage asset will be subject to the requirements of the National Planning Policy Framework at Section 16: Conserving and enhancing the historic environment and including paragraphs 204 and 208.

These criteria have been prepared with specific reference to Historic England’s ‘Conservation Principles – Policies and Guidance for the Sustainable Management of the Historic Environment’; and ‘Good Practice Guide for Local Heritage Listing’. For a building to be identified as a non-designated heritage asset it needs to meet at least two of the following criteria:

• Archaeological interest
• Recorded in the Suffolk County Historic Environment Record Architectural interest - an above ground archaeological site or historic building recorded in the Suffolk County Council Historic Environment Record. Identification of archaeological interest will always have to be made in conjunction with the Suffolk County Council Archaeological Service. Subsurface archaeological interest is considered and advised on separately by the Suffolk County Council Archaeological Service.
• Architectural interest
• Aesthetic value - the building or structure, through its intrinsic design value derived from local styles, materials, workmanship or any other distinctive local characteristic, will exhibit a positive external appearance in the streetscene, village or townscape or landscape.
• Known architect - the building or structure will be the work of an architect of local, regional or national noteworthiness.
• Integrity - the building or structure will retain a degree of intactness and lack of harmful external alteration and, if part of a group, will make a contribution to the surviving completeness of that group.
• Landmark status - the building or structure by virtue of its design, age, innovation, construction, position, use or communal associations contributes as a landmark within the local scene.
• Group value - the buildings or structures will have a coherent design or historic functional relationship as a group.
• Artistic interest
• Aesthetic value - the building or structure, through its intrinsic design value derived from local styles, materials, workmanship or any other distinctive local characteristic, will exhibit a positive external appearance in the streetscene, village or townscape or landscape.
• Known designer - the building or structure will be the work of a designer of local, regional or national noteworthiness.
• Historic interest
• Association - the building or structure will enjoy a significant historical association of local or national noteworthiness including links to important local figures or events.
• Rarity - the building or structure must represent a design, use or other quality that was always uncommon or has now become uncommon or exceptional to the locality, district or wider region.
• Representativeness - the building or structure will survive as a good quality representative of a particular historical or architectural trend or settlement pattern; or be part of the legacy of a particular individual, architect or designer, architectural or artistic movement, company or group in the past.
• Social and communal value - the building or structure will be perceived locally as a source of local identity (for example, commemorative or symbolic), distinctiveness, social interaction or contributing to the collective memory of a place.

Some locally significant uses may provide typologies of buildings and structures that can be identified as non-designated heritage assets, such as: agricultural; commemorative; commercial; culture, entertainment and leisure; resort tourism; domestic; educational; health and welfare; industrial; military; aviation; forestry; water management; landed Estates; fishing; brewing; law and local government; park and garden structures; ecclesiastical; transport; maritime and coastal defence; utilities, energy and communications; civil defences; street furniture and historic surfaces.

Local Plans and Historic Environment Supplementary Planning Document

Local Plans in East Suffolk include policies relating to Non-Designated Heritage Assets. These are SCLP11.6 of the Suffolk Coastal Local Plan and WLP8.38 of the Waveney Local Plan. The Historic Environment Supplementary Planning Document supports these policies.