BPT advocates and campaigns for the total public realm, a healthy environment and a thriving living city, through our Planning and Conservation team; Joanna Robinson (Design, Conservation and Sustainability Manager) and Alex Sherman, CEO. The team is advised and supported in-house by Dr Amy Frost, an architectural historian and Senior Curator of BPT’s four museums. The role and remit of the team is to monitor and encourage excellence in new development and policy changes to ensure that change is well- managed, high quality, sensitive and appropriate to Bath’s sustainable future and value as a World Heritage Site. We do this by monitoring and responding to planning applications and policy consultations, through active campaigns and by sharing expert knowledge BPT is a prominent stakeholder and ‘critical friend’ to many local projects and groups, offering advice, support and learning on a very wide range of issues and topics including Bath’s large development sites and by proactively engaging with B&NES on many matters affecting the city.
Our Advocacy and Campaigns (A&C) Committee provides strategic oversight of the Advocacy and Campaigning activities and Planning Conservation work of BPT. It provides scrutiny to proposals, enables advice, guidance and support to staff and oversees project development and delivery on behalf of the Board of Trustees.
A&C prepares the setting, strategy and priorities which guide the language of the responses provided by BPT’s other committees. It delegates individual responsibilities to sub-committees as appropriate.
Terms of Reference are available here.
Supporting these aims the Architecture Planning and Place Committee (AP&P) coordinates reactive responses to individual planning applications and listed building consents, pre-application consultations, advice requests, and planning guidance and policy consultations, drawing on the skills and expertise of independent, professional advisors. The collective memory and representation provided by AP&P trustees and advisors is an important asset to ensure BPT may offer qualified advice and opinions based on policy, best practice design standards and an understanding of development issues affecting Bath and its environs.
Working with a group of experienced and informed advisors, the committee contributes to responses which are subsequently compiled and edited to create a collective BPT response, signed off by Trustees as appropriate.
This Committee meets every second Tuesday of the month to consider plans with impact on the city. The aim is always to respond with clear and constructive observations and advice in line with A&C objectives BPT positively welcomes early consultation with the Local Authority, Developers and members of the public.
Terms of Reference are available here.
The Environs sub-Committee provides a strategic forum which enables representatives from the twelve rural parishes surrounding Bath to discuss matters which affect them. These may relate to planning policy, local planning applications, listed building consents and other developments which may affect or of influence the character of the rural areas. The sub-Committee provides an opportunity to engage the support and expertise of BPT officers and other attendees.
Particular areas of focus include protection of the Green Belt, inappropriate development and the consideration of any issues which might deteriorate or erode communities, or enable urban sprawl.
Terms of Reference are available here.
Joanna is based at the Old School House in the courtyard of the Museum of Bath Architecture on the Vineyards, Paragon. For advice and support on Bath-related planning issues, or for conservation and listed building advice, call 01225 338727 or email us at conservation@bptrust.org.uk.
