Heritage Now #10

CASEWORK

within a Grade II registered park and garden and is currently used as a wedding venue. It remains a good example of well-preserved mid-19th century grounds enhancing the setting of a fine small, Italianate country house. The hall itself has been restored and redecorated, but a large ‘temporary’ marquee stands on a ter race on the site of the former conservatory. HB&P have raised concerns with a proposal to replace the marquee with a permanent banqueting hall. The location on the east elevation facing the main gardens within key views of the house, as well as the boxy design, make it an inappropriate per manent addition. We have requested an options appraisal to investigate other locations that would reduce the impact on the composition and setting of the house and garden, or potentially consider reinstating the large conservatory, for which good archival evidence remains, to inform a new design. This mill is nestled into the west side of the Pen nines, next to the Huddersfield Narrow Canal and Dingle Brook. It dates to 1772 and is one of the earliest mills to survive in the area. Initially it was a teasing mill, but by the early 1800s it was extended and used for cotton spinning. By 1900 it had become a tannery − powered by an internal waterwheel drawing water diverted from Diggle Brook. Gas power was installed in the 1920s and the mill race was back-filled. The original 1700s portion of the building was, in part, later used as a dwelling, but it has been vacant for over a dec ade. A proposed development will convert it to a mix of holiday lets and a co-working hub. While the structural repairs and a new use is welcome, a large, parallel range is planned to the rear, which overwhelms the original mill building. We are concerned about a large, 2.5 storey ‘picture window’ opening to the front elevation of the older 1770s building (which involves the loss of the ramp), the lowering of the basement level, remov ing all evidence of the mill race, as well as the loss of other historic building fabric, such as floors and some of the original oak beams. BROWNHILL BRIDGE MILL, SADDLEWORTH, OLDHAM

street in Brecon. But its heritage significance lies within its design and as one of the first new post war libraries in Wales to be built. Influenced by Scandinavian architectural thinking, the build ing’s flexibility and openness facilitates a variety of reading material in one space, including a specialist children’s section and Welsh language books. The library facilities have been relocated and it is now proposed to convert the building into a school. A viability assessment concluded that few other uses in the town would need a floorplate of this size and the school use would keep the building as a whole, rather than requiring a hard subdivision for multiple units. Concerns were raised about the impact of subdividing the space into individual classrooms, which would alter the open plan that contributes to the significance. We recommended that movable (and reversable) dividers be considered to address the issue and allow flexibility and that original space to be

TOP: Garthmyl Hall, Powys, a Grade II-listed building, built in 1762 and remodelled in 1859 by James K. Colling for the owner, Major Gould. (Tyssil) BOTTOM: Brownhill Bridge Mill, Oldham. We remain concerned about the loss of fabric to this important 18th-century mill. (M. Smith)

SHIP STREET LIBRARY, BRECON, BANNAU BRYCHEINIOG (BRECON BEACONS) NATIONAL PARK

Constructed in 1969 as the county library for Bre conshire, the modern design has long been con troversial not least because it replaced a row of medieval buildings. It remains an anomaly within the otherwise traditional architecture of the high

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HERITAGE NOW (03/2024) WINTER 2024