Telford & Wrekin Council calls for nominations for buildings of historical interest

Telford & Wrekin Council is urging local people to come forward with nominations for sites to be listed as local buildings of historical interest – but time is running out. Nominations for new entries will close on 19 March.

The Council has adopted a new set of criteria to be used to select buildings for the ‘local interest’ register and wants residents and history groups to use their local knowledge to come up with nominations.

It is more than 40 years since the last time the list was updated.

The list is made up of buildings that may not meet the criteria for national designation for being listed but nevertheless are felt to be of great significance at a local level for their historic or architectural character. 

They do not have the same level of legal protection as buildings on the national, or 'statutory' list, but the desirability of protecting them and their historic significance must be weighed up in any planning decisions.

Currently there are more than 500 properties, ranging from cottages to stables and chapels, listed as of local interest, but some on the register have changed so much over the past four decades they are no longer of heritage interest and may be removed from the list.

Under the newly drawn up list of criteria, buildings will be judged on their completeness, their historic, artistic, architectural or archaeological heritage value and their local heritage value. The register can include structures that aren’t usually classed as ‘buildings’, such as bridges, walls or railings, statues and canal locks.

The local values will aim to identify buildings that are particular to Telford and Wrekin, such as a Duke of Sutherland cottage, a Wesleyan or Methodist non-conformist chapel, an early new town building or a structure related to local industry, such as mining or iron-working, or from the area’s pre-industrial past.

Cllr Carolyn Healy Cabinet Member for Visitor Economy, Historic & Natural Environment and Climate Change said: “There are so many wonderful historic buildings across the borough and we want to ensure we’ve captured as many as we can in our refreshed list. 

“Creating a local list of historic buildings allows us to highlight what is significant about a building, the narrative this creates for the town but also helps to make sure that any future changes to our historic properties do not result in the loss of its historic values”. 

“I’d like to encourage our residents to get involved and submit any buildings they spot in their local area for consideration. There are many properties undiscovered, by coming together we can ensure as many of them are documented”. 

Information about the Buildings of Local Interest list and the selection criteria consultation is available here. Nominations for entries to the new list will close on 19 March 2021.