Local Buildings at Risk
July 12, 2005 2:19 PM
Several local buildings have been listed at risk by English Heritage in the latest (2005) Register. The main ones were:
• Normansfield Hospital. A Grade II listed building "of outstanding interest" is described as in "poor condition" and "at immediate risk of further rapid deterioration".
• Pope's Grotto. Also Grade II listed "of outstanding interest" is subject to slow decay with no agreed solutions, Loggia in "very bad" condition with collapsed roof.
• Old Brew House, Bushy Park. A scheduled Ancient Monument built around 1700. Empty and prone to vandalism.
• Strawberry Hill House. Grade I listed building. No crisis identified though currently in "fair" condition. Trust set up by Friends of Strawberry Hill.
• Platt's Eyot Boatyard. Grade II listed in "very bad" condition. Could be saved as part of redevelopment.
(There are also 4 buildings on the Richmond side of the river.)
Vincent Cable MP said: "English Heritage performs a very valuable function in identifying important buildings, at risk, which are part of our heritage. Normansfield Hospital is an especially worrying case since there has been awareness of the risk for a decade or more and there is an impasse over refurbishment of the building, English Heritage judge its decay to be extreme and very worrying. With others, such as Platt's Eyot, there is some prospect of an early rescue but the redevelopment of the island is subject to a controversial planning application."
