2 Cavendish Place, Bath

2 Cavendish Place is a Grade early 19th century terraced townhouse by John Pinch the Elder, situated within the Bath conservation area and World Heritage Site. It forms part of a significant concentration of significant Grade I and Grade II late 18th – early 19th century terraces along Cavendish Road, Park Place, and Park Street, as well as forming part of the wider indicative setting of notable set pieces such as the Grade I St James’s Square. The building façade is indicative of the wider treatment of the terrace in Bath stone ashlar with a rusticated ground floor and Pompeian scroll frieze over the second floor, although without the ‘sweeping’ detail visible along Cavendish Road as it steps down the north-south slope. A key focus of the proposals are the windows across the principal elevation; the building features a mix of 6-over-6 sash windows traditional in style to the building’s original period of construction, and later 1-over-1 sash windows across the ground and first floor. These are described as “C19 plate glass horned sashes” in the listing description (Historic England) and as such, whilst of some material historic value, are of limited significance in relation to the building’s special architectural and historic interest as part of Bath’s Regency-era westward expansion.

The removal of paint from the window sills and reveals is welcomed.

BPT is supportive of the opportunity to reinstate traditional-style multi-pane sash windows across the frontage of the building, particularly in the larger and visually prominent windows at first floor level, originally forming the dramatic piano nobile. Proposals would ensure a consistent fenestration treatment across the building with gains to the building’s appearance as well as the shared appearance and character of the wider terrace.

It is indicated that the proposed glazing bars would match the existing 20mm astragal profile across the rest of the building, which is supported. However, we suggest this detail may be clarified with appropriate sections of the proposed windows for the benefit of assessment by the case officer. It is presumed that ‘through’ glazing bars, as opposed to ‘applied’ glazing bars, would be used, although this has not been specified as part of this application.