Key unlisted buildings in Holt Conservation Area

Holt conservation area has over one hundred nationally listed buildings. This is the result of a comprehensive rebuilding that took place after the great fire of 1708. Holt at that point became the Georgian town that it is today. This is most apparent if you visit the town in the evening or other quiet times, when the absence of road traffic makes it possible to see the buildings as an integrated whole. National listed buildings are protected by law from inappropriate development. It is fortunate that so much of the conservation area is covered by national listing.

However, there are some buildings which, while contributing significantly to the townscape, are not on the national list. NNDC have identified eleven such buildings and refer to them as 'key unlisted buildings'. This list can be viewed on the NNDC planning website by downloading the Conservation Area Appraisal document for Holt and going to section 6.3 'Key unlisted buildings'.

The Society committee made a recent tour of the town centre to see if we felt there were any additional buildings that should be on the list. We identified five which we felt were worthy of inclusion. We submitted these to NNDC and they have agreed that two of our suggestions should now be on the list. These are the Primary School on the Norwich Road and Shirehall Cottage (formally a Methodist manse) on Shirehall Plain. In future therefore, any planning applications for these buildings will receive extra scrutiny by the planners before any changes are agreed. This is a pleasing result for The Holt Society both as protection for our town centre and as an illustration of our improved working relationship with NNDC.