stoneygate newsletter august 2017€¦ · as they watched its huge bulk rising up behind their...

SCAS Newsletter Contact: Nick Knight [[email protected]] with your ideas

Conservation Area Society (SCAS)

Newsletter August 2017 Stoneygate

SCAS Chair: David Oldershaw SCAS Website: www.stoneygateconservation.org

Newsletter: Nita Foale, Nick Knight Printed by: AVS-Print, University of Leicester

1938: Smart Metropolitan Living Arrives in Stoneygate Leicester’s first and (arguably) only dalliance with the mansion flat block, Stoneygate Court is one of the area’s most distinctive buildings.

It is hard to imagine what the residents of the south side of St John’s Road must have thought as they watched its huge bulk rising up behind their Victorian villas. A pleasing view of the wooded grounds of The Shrubbery (the fine 1840s house that was demolished to make way for the Court), was slowly being replaced by a five-storey monolith with dozens of windows looking down into their once sunny, private gardens. Where once two homes stood, there were now to be sixty-four. Nothing on this scale had ever been seen in Stoneygate. Although two sizeable Art Deco-influenced blocks had been

built nearby at Knighton Court, they made far less of an impact, being relatively tucked away in Knighton Park Road, and at just three storeys high, were not much taller than their Victorian neighbours. With its turreted and castellated roofline, Stoneygate Court literally towered over its surroundings.

The architect for the project was Hector O. Hamilton of 27 Park Lane, London W1 whose imaginative modern designs include the Spanish-style San Remo Towers in Boscombe, the stylish Art Deco Tunnel Garage in New York (demolished, despite vigorous opposition, in 2006) and, most intriguingly, the Palace of the Soviets in Moscow, although this was never built. Hamilton entered an international competition to design the Palace and his entry was chosen above those of world-renowned competitors such as Walter Gropius and Le Corbusier.

The development was marketed through Andrew and Ashwell, an established firm of Leicester estate agents and their brochure makes clear just how remarkably futuristic it was;

`Stoneygate Court, Leicester’s first superior self-contained flats, offers you a modern way of living..…luxurious and carefree..…at a reasonable cost. Surprisingly reasonable in fact! Central heating .…constant hot water ….lifts, refrigerators .…fitted cupboards and cabinets .…labour-saving devices .…porters .…garages .…beautiful grounds .…all these you will have if you make Stoneygate Court your home. The best features of modern technique in flat construction and appointments have been incorporated in these, Leicester’s luxury flats.’

Rent, rates, water rates, central heating, hot water, buildings insurance and general and garden maintenance were all covered by the service charge. Everything was included except furnishing, food, inside electricity or gas and domestic help. It was assumed that most tenants would wish to employ a daily although it adds `The smaller flats can be easily worked without domestic help.’

Continued overleaf


The flats came in three types. Most were the size of a substantial suburban house, with ample sitting and dining rooms; two large double bedrooms with fitted wardrobes; one good sized single bedroom; labour-

saving kitchens, tiled bathrooms, cloaks cupboard and two WCs. The grounds were attractively landscaped and garages were available to rent on a week-by-week basis.

Stoneygate Court was aimed at those with relatively high incomes for whom practical modern interiors and a traditional setting were equally appealing - and it seems to have worked. Local directories show the early residents to have been a mix of company directors and their families, doctors, dentists, commercial agents, business people, gentlemen and ladies about town and the comfortably retired.

During the war the Court became the medical centre for the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) and until recently there was one elderly resident who could still remember seeing the ATS girls exercising on the lawn. Over the years it has been home to some of the city’s leading professional and industrial figures who have found the elegant, comfortable and convenient lifestyle it offers much to their liking. Its appeal has endured and today the flats are as sought-after as they ever were. Their size, high standard of maintenance and spacious grounds make them unique amongst Leicester’s housing stock.

Fact File For many years, local historians have been `barking up the wrong tree’ as to the Court’s origins. Some time ago a book was published describing all London Road properties from the Victoria Park roundabout to the city boundary. This stated that in 1931 The Shrubbery (below) was sold to the Norwich Union Insurance Company who then built flats on the site. However, thanks to meticulous research by Dr. Lawrence Whittaker, a resident of the Court, we now know that The Shrubbery and Shrubbery Cottage were both occupied until at least 1934. In fact it’s not until 1938, that Stoneygate Court appears in the electoral register - and it was as late as 19th March 1937 that planning approval was given, `subject to steelwork being to the satisfaction of the City Surveyor and also that the food storage meets with the requirements of the Ministry of Health.’

The original developer seems to have been a company called John David Estates Ltd. By 1944 the freehold had transferred to Stoneygate Court Ltd and in October of that year Norwich Union bought the flats for £75,000 which included £4,500 for furnishings. The company sold them, together with other flats in their portfolio, in December 1971 for £5,713,000. So Norwich Union’s ownership was for a much shorter period than originally thought. Surprisingly, it wasn’t until Norwich Union sold Stoneygate Court that the flats became available to buy.

Six Goddard Buildings: - A Guided Walk Sunday 10th September 2.00pm

(Part of Heritage Open Days 2017)

From the Clock Tower - to the Leicestershire Bank on Granby Street/Bishop Street corner (now ISKCON) taking in six buildings designed by local architect Joseph Goddard.

Led by Stuart Bailey of Leicester Civic Society

Advance booking essential: Stuart Bailey, 48 Meadow Avenue, Loughborough LE11 1JT Phone: 01509-266818

Neil Crutchley


We were sad to learn of the passing on June 5th of our first ever membership secretary, Odette Fogler. Odette joined SCAS shortly after its formation in 1978 and began to maintain a list of members in 1983. Her 27 years of meticulous record-keeping provided the basis for our current computerised membership database and she was still hand-delivering receipts, reminders to late-payers and newsletters in her nineties. She was the first point of contact for most SCAS members and her knowledge, intelligence, sense of humour and efficiency were legendary. David Oldershaw recalls that `Odette’s support and assistance in the dark days of the mid 1990s until SCAS re-launched in 1995 was invaluable’.

Odette lived in the conservation area and took an active interest in all sorts of community affairs. Fellow volunteer Elizabeth Bacon tells us that, together with friends in the early sixties `she helped set up one of the very early Oxfam shops and was always to be seen at the annual CND garden party behind a stall. She had a wide range of interests including music and cinema and loved working in my garden at weekends, as she did not have her own’

Odette was a very private person. She arrived in England as a refugee from Austria in 1937 and found work as a mother’s help first in Lincolnshire and later in Leicester. It was pure chance that she came to this country. She had been given leave to go to America with her mother and sister but as she had always admired the English, she swapped her ticket with that of a neighbour. After the war she taught shorthand and typing and then worked in the School of Education at the University of Leicester until retirement. Odette’s age was a secret successfully kept from most of us. Suffice it to say that she did receive a congratulatory message from Her Majesty the Queen, three years ago.

Our July trip to Cotswold Lavender and Kelmscott Manor could hardly have gone better. The coach was almost full and the early start and steady drizzle did nothing to deter the lively buzz of conversation as we made our way toward the M69. Once we reached deepest Gloucestershire the sun came out and for the rest of the day, the weather was perfect.

The sunlight was reflecting off the rain-fresh lavender fields as we arrived at Hill Barn Farm and, although relatively brief, our stop still allowed us plenty of time to enjoy the cakes and infusions at the excellent tearooms. The main attraction, though, was Kelmscott. The house and grounds, the introductory talk and wonderfully knowledgeable Society of Antiquaries guides (one in

each room) were a treat. Together they gave us a fascinating insight into the Morrises, their art and their simultaneously backward- and forward-looking lifestyle. For devotees of the arts and crafts movement, the sixteenth century farm buildings and their contents have become something of a shrine but to this visitor, at least, they radiate a very warm and human form of sanctity.

Kelmscott’s buff-coloured local stone and grey-brown tile are a marked contrast to industrial Leicester’s red brick and slate and the peace and seclusion of village and house give the place a timeless, other-worldly quality. One can see its allure for Ernest Gimson who was a frequent visitor and who designed the Manor Cottages and Memorial Hall, a short walk away up the lane.

Woods provided us with a luxurious coach and a helpful and knowledgeable driver who took us through the lovely villages of Moreton-in-Marsh, Stow-on-the-Wold and Burford and made a small detour so that we could catch a glimpse of the Thames. Overall it was a delightful, carefree day, organised seamlessly by our Treasurer, Arthur Stafford.

Odette Fogler

A Grand Day Out with the Morrises


Historic England Tightens Listing Criteria

Two applications were made recently to Historic England to list Stoneygate houses. Thorncroft, 244 London Road was the retirement home of tourism and travel pioneer Thomas Cook. The Red House, Stoneygate Avenue (featured in the April 2016 Newsletter) is an innovative arts and crafts-influenced house of 1901 designed by architect Walter Catlow for hosiery manufacturer Stephen Stretton.

Neither application was successful and the reasons given suggest worrying changes to HE’s listing criteria. Referring to Thorncroft, HE say that `Unfortunately, its current circumstances …..do not fall into any of the three categories used by the Department for Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) to prioritise designation resources on sites that are most in need of protection;

Threat: under serious threat of demolition or major alteration Strategic Priority: a strategic designation priority under the Historic England Action Plan Evident Significance: any building or site that possesses evident significance that makes it obviously worthy of inclusion on the National Heritage List for England

They add `We acknowledge the important historical association with Thomas Cook ….However we consider that Thorncroft does not possess the evident architectural or historic interest to take this application forward to full assessment. Even if the circumstances of the building were in the future to fall into the priority categories set out above, we would still be unlikely to recommend it for designation unless there was significant new information supplied with the application’

We wonder whether Historic England assessors are under pressure from the DCMS to clear their current backlog and restrict eligibility for future listing so as to keep the

application rate manageable with existing resources. If so, this does not bode well for Stoneygate. It is particularly frustrating when, earlier this year, a City Council `Story of Leicester’ heritage interpretation panel appeared outside Thorncroft; one of only two in the conservation area.

Art House Leicester began in 2008 with only three houses and eight local artists. This year there were ten venues with some sixty artists exhibiting! The range of

artwork was impressive: ceramics, metal sculptures, jewellery, cushions, felt products and, of course, plenty of pictures created using oil, watercolour, linocuts and digital prints. Afternoon tea was once again provided at Tart House with all the proceeds going to charity. ‘Customers’ could relax in the beautiful garden on Holmfield Road and listen to music whilst enjoying a cuppa. The weather was dry and sunny at times, and there were a rewarding number of visitors throughout the event.

This year, the SCAS stand had become separated from our charismatic chairman and as a reward for rejoining the committee, I was given responsibility for running it. Fortunately, my pleas for help were answered and I had a great team of volunteers on Saturday and Sunday. We were part of a Cultural Community Corner at 12 Pendene Road, kindly hosted by Sue and Peter Ryan

who kept us supplied with furniture, insights and cups of tea.

Given that ArtHouse had been preceded by 10 days of ArtBeat, itself a varied and energetic flurry of creative activities, I couldn’t but feel both surprised and proud that this small part of Leicester should be so full of cultural enthusiasts; artists, musicians, actors, organisers and of course, audiences.

Thanks once again to everyone who generously gave their time; Jan, Kate, Aileen, Henry, Rod, Bob, Olivia, Julia, Pat, Jenny, Dee and Rich. Together we signed up a total of 14 new members!

2017: Another Good Year for Art House

Nita Foale


SCAS Annual General Meeting

Again more than 40 members attended our AGM on Monday May 22nd. Chair David Oldershaw reviewed the previous year’s activities and achievements, our financial stability was reaffirmed by Treasurer, Arthur Stafford and Nick Knight described a number of the planning and enforcement issues we had dealt with. 2016/17 saw 131 planning applications (65 relating to trees), and we commented on 17. There was an enthusiastic question-and-answer session on topics such as the impact of increased housing demand on development in Stoneygate, the paving-over of front gardens and that old favourite, uPVC double glazing. The formal business ended with retiring Membership Secretary, Jenny Westmoreland, being thanked for her seven years’ service, applauded by the meeting and presented with a bouquet of flowers. Jenny’s responsibilities now pass to Nita Foale whose happy first task was to confirm that we had ended the year with 223 members.

Our guest speaker, Austin J. Ruddy, Editor of the Leicester Mercury’s `Mr Leicester’ column, was introduced by committee member Neil Crutchley. Austin’s illustrated talk on `Stoneygate in World War Two’ was meticulously researched and provided a graphic description, both of the havoc wrought in Stoneygate by Luftwaffe bombs and parachute mines and the admirable and

often courageous human responses to them. The images of familiar streets such as Knighton Road strewn with the rubble of collapsed buildings were particularly poignant. Members were keen to ask questions and gave Austin a resounding round of applause. Copies of his book on Leicester’s air raids, `Tested by Bomb and Flame’ were all sold – which was a nice and fitting tribute.

The 2016/17 Annual Report containing full details of our activities is available on the SCAS website.

Victorian Society TALKS - Autumn 2017 Programme

Tuesday 3rd October 7.30pm

Crowns in Conflict: Queen Victoria, European Royalty and the Tragedy of World War I

David Humberston explores the inter-relationships of the family of Queen Victoria during the century preceding the Great War and the terrible conflict which eventually engulfed them all.

Tuesday 7th November 7.30pm

The History of Leicester’s Secular Hall - Ned Newitt, Director of the Leicester Secular Society will trace the history of the Society from 1851 to the present day, including the dramatic ejection from the Temperance

Hall which led to it building its own hall in 1879. Ned has led the bid to secure Heritage Lottery funding for

the Hall’s restoration and will also report on its progress.

Tuesday 5th December at 7.15 pm (seasonal refreshments will be served)

Charles Dickens, Leicester and his Public Readings Dr John Florance, radio broadcaster and journalist.

Besides being a world-famous writer, Dickens was an accomplished performer of his own work. His first countrywide reading tour in 1858 included Leicester’s Temperance Hall where he read from ‘A Christmas

Carol’. Dickens travelled by railway and John Florance’s talk will focus on his ambivalent attitude to this

marvel of the Victorian age and its significance in his writings.

Venue: Bishop Street Methodist Church, Town Hall Square. Non-members are welcome. £2.50/person


Planning Matters (May to August 2017)

In February, despite SCAS objections, consent was given to replace uPVC front windows at an attractive bay-fronted Victorian villa in Cross Road with differently designed uPVC units. The new windows (below left) were described by applicant and case officer as more in keeping with houses in the same terrace. Now they have been fitted, it is glaringly obvious that they are not.

The old windows had been installed prior to the Article 4 Direction in 2007 and this was a clear opportunity to replace them with a timber sash design. They could have been double-glazed to improve thermal efficiency and the house next door (right) would have provided an excellent model. Instead,

the officers’ only concern seems to have been whether the clumsy and bulky frames could be fitted without damaging the decorative stone surrounds.

Planners should not be accepting this sort of blatantly poor design in a conservation area. We wonder whether they are being brave enough in their advice to owners. Or whether they are making bad decisions simply to save the effort needed to defend good ones.

In May several SCAS committee members met Adam Simmonds, Head of Buildings Development for the Diocese of Leicester, to discuss possible internal and external changes (including pew removal and the creation of a cafeteria) to St John the Baptist church as part of a plan to develop its community role. We would have no objections in principle, subject to details. Adam has promised to contact us when the Diocese has more concrete proposals.

The decision to allow the felling of a TPO-protected tree at 3 Elm Tree Gardens

(right) has lessons for the future. The mature cedar was already there when the house was built as part of Wimpey’s 2009 Ascot Priory development and was incorporated into the back garden – which was clearly too small for it. Rather than giving trees what is, in effect, a short stay of execution, why not insist they be retained as a separate landscape element in any new development?

New windows have been fitted at 26 Southernhay Road. The sketches and drawings in the application made it hard to see exactly what was intended but we are pleased that the same horizontal bar frame design has been used throughout (our main concern). The frames nod to 1930s Art Deco rather than trying to faithfully reproduce it but they look smart and are a big improvement on the old uPVC windows.

In July the University of Leicester Estates Dept kindly invited us to a meeting to hear their outline plans to turn Brookfield and its grounds into a campus for a new business school. We believe the proposals offer an excellent (and sustainable) future for the site and are generally supportive. We are especially pleased that the main house will be sympathetically renovated and refurbished and that the view of it across

landscaped front gardens will be unaltered. The most visible alteration will be the replacement of the extension to the left of the main house with one of a more contemporary design (see above). We have no objection to this; in fact, we think it will be an improvement. We do have some outstanding queries relating to (i) replacement of the existing close-boarded boundary fencing (ii) rear landscaping and (iii) the retention of TPO-protected trees but we are reserving judgement until more details are available.


Earlier this month, following an open letter from local resident and Green Party spokesperson Mags Lewis, we attended a meeting chaired by Jon Ashworth MP to discuss safety issues relating to the Co-op store at the Gables Hotel

on London Road which will open its doors in September. We were encouraged by the outcome. The Co-op were helpful and took full responsibility for implementing the agreed servicing and delivery management plan. They also agreed to set up a complaint reporting system via local councillor Lynn Moore. The Highways Dept will monitor vehicle movements and reassured us that non-compliant delivery drivers and problems with entering/leaving the site would be dealt with, along with hazardous parking. We will be keeping a careful eye on events and hope

members will do likewise.

In 2015 we wrote about the large advertising signs that property and lettings company Parmars/Unipad had fixed to the walls and front fences of its conservation area properties in Victoria Park Road and London Road. Consent is required for such work and when planners reminded them of this, it seems that they were repeatedly ignored.

The City Council has now successfully obtained a court order to remove the signs. Fines, costs and victim surcharges totalling £10,680 were imposed. It is difficult to understand why a company that has been a conservation area landlord for many years would behave so irresponsibly—and risk such needless damage to its reputation.

Following our comments on over-long planning committee meetings in the April Newsletter we were pleased to hear from the City Council’s Head of Planning, Grant Butterworth, that a protocol has been introduced to keep committee meetings to around 2 hours. This seems sensible. It allows a reasonable `throughput' of applications while also ensuring that they receive proper consideration by committee members who are sufficiently alert to be capable of analysis and sound judgement.

On the submission of comments to the committee, Mr Butterworth advises that `It helps everyone involved in the process if representations are submitted within the publicity period so that they can be properly addressed in the case officer’s main report. If there is a need to submit further representations after the report has been published (one week before the meeting) then these should be submitted at least two days before the meeting so that they can be considered, summarised and included in the addendum report.’ We accept that late submissions should be avoided but it is worth pointing out that comments made after the publication of the case officer report are the only way that an objector can challenge the officer's recommendation and reasoning and that the issues thus raised can be helpful in providing committee members with questions they may not have otherwise asked.

In Brief: Springfield Road Health Centre Fell 1 (Lombard poplar) tree Tree Preservation Order St John the Baptist Primary School 3x single-storey extensions; alterations Pending 6 Toller Road Replacement uPVC front windows Pending 11 Elmfield Ave Demolish house, 3 storey 72 bed care home, access, parking, landscaping, trees and other associated works. Pending 3A Knighton Park Road Basement extension, front lightwell, external access at rear Pending 11 Stoneygate Ave Retrospective application for front wall, railings & gates Conditionally Approved 15 Knighton Drive Fell 2 (cypress) trees TPO 61 Conditionally Approved 34 Victoria Park Road 1.2m high bow top railings at front Conditionally Approved 12 Central Ave Alterations to rear roof, replace windows/doors, platform and steps at rear Conditionally Approved 11 North Ave Change of use from dwelling to 3 flats Conditionally Approved 2 Southernhay Rd 1 & 2 storey rear extension, rear balcony, alterations Conditionally Approved 19 St Johns Road Change of use of part of ground-floor flat to medical clinic Conditionally Approved

Nick Knight


I/we wish to maintain my/our membership /become a member of SCAS and enclose a cheque

for £6 (per household per year) for the period to April 1st 2018

Name ……………………………………………………………………………………………................

Address .…………………………………………………………................. Postcode…………………

Contact Phone ....................................................... E-mail......................................................................

Send to: Nita Foale, Membership Secretary, 2 Clarendon Park Leicester, LE2 3AD

Phone: 244 8438 email: [email protected]

Membership News

Membership subs for 2017/18 were due on April 1st and a reminder was sent out earlier this month. If you have not yet renewed, wish to remain a member and continue receiving our newsletter, please return your payment slip to Nita with a cheque or note that you have paid online. Better still, set up a regular standing order payment using the form which accompanied the letter. It fixes your payment; it can be cancelled easily if your circumstances change; it gives you one less thing to remember. What’s not to like?

Members Glen Bush, Paul Griffiths, Indira Nath, Pat Kirkham and Jan Moore all kindly responded to our appeal for help with newsletter deliveries. Gordon will be in touch when you are needed! One deliverer who will be missed is Lisa Williams who is handing in her badge after eight years. We are very grateful to Lisa who has helped us with extra promotional mailings and – most memorably - rallied neighbours in the Knighton Drive/Elms Road area during the now legendary `Burger Van Scare’ of December 2009.

Liaison with Local Societies & Groups There are now several amenity societies and community groups in this area of town and we are actively exploring ways in which we can help each other.

SCAS member Jan Moore has volunteered to attend Friends of Clarendon Park (www.clarrypark.org) public meetings and act as our regular liaison. Nick Knight gave a slideshow tour of the Conservation Area at their July meeting and will illustrate the challenges SCAS faces in safeguarding it at a future date.

The Evington Footpath Conservation Area Society officially came into existence on June 15th. The inaugural meeting was chaired by Stuart Bailey of the Leicester Civic Society and Nick attended on behalf of SCAS. It has a full committee, an energetic Chair and the support of local councillor Lucy Chaplin.

The Friends of Victoria Park (www.fovp-leicester.org.uk) is a `virtual’ group which exists entirely online and communicates via social media.

Knighton Neighbourhood Forum (www.knightonforum.org.uk) is the designated neighbourhood forum for the Knighton Neighbourhood Area and as such has an enhanced ability to influence City Council decision–making under the Localism Act.

Co-ordinated nationally by the National Trust, `Heritage Open Days’ allow members of the public free access to historical buildings and other places that would not normally be open or whose admission charges, restricted opening times and functions make visiting difficult.

This year’s Leicester Open Days are between Thursday 7th September and Sunday 10th September and there are more participating venues than ever. For full details and opening times see: https://www.heritageopendays.org.uk/visiting/printable-area-lists/town/Leicester

Heritage Open Days

http://www.clarrypark.org/

http://www.fovp-leicester.org.uk/

http://www.knightonforum.org.uk/

https://www.heritageopendays.org.uk/visiting/printable-area-lists/town/Leicester

stoneygate newsletter august 2017€¦ · as they watched its huge bulk rising up behind their...

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