The Old Barn, Church Close, Bathampton

Proposal
External alterations to insert small CCTV camera on front elevation of the building.
Our Response

The Old Barn is a Grade II late 18th century barn, now a converted residential dwelling, situated within the Bathampton conservation area and the indicative landscape setting of the Bath World Heritage Site. The building forms part of the historic setting of the Grade II* Parish Church of Saint Nicholas, and formed part of a group of agricultural buildings including what is now known as Yew Tree Barn up until the mid-20th century. The building is clearly visible from Church Close and has some limited visibility to the west from Mill Lane. The gabled porch on the east elevation was added in place of the existing, historic opening in the 1980s and was designed to emulate the historic west gabled porch. Whilst works to the east porch would therefore have a reduced impact on historic fabric, the architectural interest of the building in its symmetrical articulation and the projecting gabled porches on both the east and west elevations as the focal aesthetic point of the building remains a valid consideration.

We do not condone works conducted without listed building consent and emphasise that consent should be acquired before works are permitted to begin.

We note that the camera is clearly visible from the road due to its colour and elevated position near the apex of the western gabled porch. The camera is located asymmetrically off to one side of the arched entrance, and therefore visually offsets the barn’s designed symmetrical appearance. We feel that the current camera would have an impact on the special architectural interest of a listed building and would result in the addition of further visual clutter to the building’s frontage without appropriate mitigation. The elevated position of the camera results in an increased prominence in public views of the building.

Should the principle of the CCTV camera be found acceptable, we strongly recommend that it is more sensitively located to reduce its visual impact, potentially concealed below the eaves line on the main body of the building. We additionally feel that the white colour of the camera is too strident at present and a more recessive colour could be selected, such as an off white/buff to match the stonework, or a dark grey to blend in with the rainwater goods.

Application Number: 21/00849/LBA
Application Date: 24/02/2021
Closing Date: 01/04/2021
Address: The Old Barn, Church Close, Bathampton
Our Submission Status: Comment