76 Great Pulteney Street, Bathwick, Bath

76 Great Pulteney Street forms part of a Grade I series of late 18th century terraced houses at 66-77 Great Pulteney Street, situated within the Bath conservation area and World Heritage Site. It forms part of the wider streetscape setting of multiple clusters of high significance Grade I terraced buildings along Great Pulteney Street to form a cohesive architectural whole which creates an intentional visual thoroughfare between Pulteney Bridge and the Holburne Museum as part of an unfinished mid-18th century aspirations to extend the city to the east of the River Avon. It is therefore a significant evidential aspect of Bath’s Georgian Town Planning OUV as a World Heritage Site. The frontage of Great Pulteney Street as a whole remains paramount in its aesthetic, architectural, and historic value; the architect Thomas Baldwin was responsible for the homogenous design of the façade, but the actual structures were built individually, resulting in different internal layouts and features along the terrace.

We are generally supportive of works for the cleaning of “built up dirt and pollution” to enhance the appearance of the frontage of a Grade I building as well as the contextual setting of a high concentration of listed buildings. The sensitive removal of accumulated soiling would help to mitigate possible future harm to historic stonework, although BPT continues to advocate for the use of gentle cleaning methods to avoid an overcleaned appearance and the loss of historic patina. We refer to B&NES Historic Environment Note ‘Cleaning Bath Stone’ for further guidance.

We recommend that further details are submitted to clarify the proposed scope of works. The proposed elevations should be marked up to indicate areas to be cleaned. We further suggest the submission of a method statement outlining the proposed cleaning process to ensure that this is compatible with the soft, porous qualities of historic Bath stone.