12 – 13 Queen Square, City Centre, Bath

12-13 Queen Square form a terraced pair of Grade I early 18th century townhouses, situated within the Bath conservation area and World Heritage Site. It forms part of the wider Grade I ensemble at Queen Square by John Wood and a significant example of Georgian town planning and innovations in dramatic urban topography. As a whole, the terraced setpiece therefore cumulatively contributes to the OUV of the World Heritage site. In the case of 12-13 Queen Square, No. 13 is indicated to have been in use as a commercial premise by Stone King LLP (formerly Edward King) from 1832 up until vacancy in 2021. By 1895, the offices had extended into No. 12, resulting in the merger of what had formerly been two separate dwellings.

We note that the D&A/Heritage Statement indicates that “secondary glazing can be an achievable and worthwhile thermal improvement, subject to detailed site investigation.” However, there is no further reference to the potential installation of secondary glazing in the proposed plans supplied as part of this application. Where there is an opportunity for the integration of energy efficiency measures whilst appropriately sustaining the special interest of a listed building, we strongly encourage that this should be given further consideration as to securing the optimum viable use of the building going forwards. Pending the submission of appropriate sections, drawings, and details to ensure that a secondary glazing system is selected that is appropriately recessive to, and materially compatible with, the existing windows, we would be generally supportive of the principle of secondary glazing. This would be a significant opportunity for the thermal upgrade of a prominent Grade I building in the city centre that could be used to inform further similar retrofit projects.