Presumption against demolition of Listed Buildings

The Council will ensure that every effort is made to safeguard Listed Buildings and consequently there is a clear presumption against their demolition, which will only be considered appropriate in exceptional cases. The destruction of historic buildings is very seldom necessary for reasons of good planning. More often it is a result of neglect or the failure to make imaginative efforts to find new uses for them or to incorporate them into new development. While it is acknowledged that very occasionally demolition of a Listed Building will be unavoidable, the Council will not grant consent simply because the redevelopment is economically more attractive to the developer than repair or re-use of the building or because the building was acquired at a price that reflected the potential for redevelopment, rather than the condition or constraints of the existing historic building.