English Heritage report lists Merseyside's historic sites at risk

Jun 23 2009 By Vicky Anderson

Collegiate School

Wayne Colquhoun, chairman of Liverpool Preservation Trust, said: "It’s really good to highlight things like this, but really, it’s more about knuckling down and sorting out problems, providing the cash and the expertise to make a difference.

"There are greater problems than plastic windows and satellite dishes – some parts of Seel Street look like they precede the years after the war.

"What English Heritage need to get to grips with is Liverpool’s historic buildings and the way they have allowed the infill of new build to make the old buildings look alien in their own environment." Liverpool City Council’s conservation officer, Chris Griffiths, said: "This at- risk register is very useful to bring people’s attention to question the value of local distinctiveness and heritage.

"I think what English Heritage want to do is bring about a sea change in the culture of how conservation areas are maintained. I’m quite surprised that Sefton Park is deemed to be at risk. Shaw Street has some listed buildings at risk and Wavertree Village has a lot of plastic windows."

Liverpool has 36 conservation areas according to the city council, with eight of them making the at risk register.

In Wirral, English Heritage says Hamilton Square – the largest, Grade I Listed, Victorian square outside London – faces an "uncertain future" due to what it describes as the under-use of buildings, including the recent closure of the museum in the town hall. But local support is strong, with public interest groups and Wirral Borough Council working together in recent years to combat the decline.

Cllr Jerry Williams, the borough’s "heritage Champion", said: "Wirral has embraced the conservation strategy very well and there are over 40 local history societies working in partnership with the council to promote them.

"From a heritage point of view, Wirral is firing on all cylinders, and Hamilton Square is of massive importance, so we are watching this situation very carefully. There are a number of initiatives planned by heritage groups to revive the area, like history trails."

Dr Simon Thurley, chief executive of English Heritage, said: "Millions of us live in, work in, pass through or visit conservation areas. They are the centres of historic towns and villages, 1930s suburbs, rural idylls or estates of industrial workers’ cottages: the local heritage that gives England its distinctiveness.

"These are difficult economic times but Our research shows that conservation areas do not need time-consuming or costly measures, just prioritising as places people cherish, the commitment of the whole council and good-management by residents and councils alike.

"Well-cared for they encourage good neighbourliness, give a boost to the local economy and will continue to be a source of national pride and joy for generations to come."