Nelson House, 2 Pierrepont Street, City Centre, Bath

2 Pierrepont Street forms part of a Grade II* listed section of terraced townhouses at Nos. 2-6, now in a mix of uses including commercial/food & drink and office space, situated within the Bath City-Wide Conservation Area and World Heritage Site. It forms part of the setting of a high concentration of Grade II, II*, and I buildings along Manvers Street, and is situated adjacent to the Grade II* 7-13 Pierrepont Street. The terrace was originally designed with a consistent scale, form, and architectural finish indicative of its original part of John Wood’s unfinished ‘Royal Forum’ development, though parts of the terrace have undergone historic alterations with changes to the door and window openings and associated detailing, particularly illustrated at Nos. 4 & 6, but there appears to be a retained architectural consistency with No. 5.

The principal elevation of No. 2 is currently in a deteriorating condition with visible areas of pitting to the stonework, as well as areas of stonework missing from the corniced window surrounds at first floor level. We are therefore supportive of proposed remedial stonework repairs to address ongoing damage and enhance the principal elevation of a listed building and its contribution to the character and appearance of the conservation area. The submission of a method statement detailing the scope and method of stonework repair is encouraged.

We are further supportive of the proposed cleaning works to the second floor cornice, though recommend that further details are provided to ensure that cleaning works are appropriately sensitive to the stonework, and the cleaned areas would match the existing colour and patina of the building’s façade.

The principle of painting the ground and lower ground floors has already been established, where these are already finished in a white paint. The use of a porous paint type that does not impede the breathable qualities of Bath stone is generally recommended. BPT generally maintains a position in favour of the removal of paint from external elevations where possible and reinstate the natural Bath stone ashlar appearance where this was originally intended as part of the building’s design, though we recognise this is beyond the scope of this planning application.

The replacement of the existing uPVC water goods with aluminium equivalents is considered to be an enhancement, though further details are encouraged regarding the proposed finish of the replacement rainwater goods. Where possible, the new downpipe should be secured reusing existing fixing points to minimise loss of historic fabric.

The removal of redundant cables at lower ground floor level is supported where this would remove unnecessary clutter from the frontage of a listed building.