Conservation Area FAQs
- Is my property in a conservation area?
- Can I replace windows in a conservation area without planning permission?
- What restrictions apply to a building in a conservation area?
Conservation Areas - A guide to the law and your responsibilities
- Planning Considerations
- Permitted Development
- Demolition
- Trees
- Pre-application Advice Service
- Conservation Areas in Fareham
- Conservation Area Character Assessment
- What is a Conservation Area?
- Why are they Designated?
- Contacts
Conservation Areas - A guide to the law and your responsibilities (1,445 Kb) 
is also available in pdf format.
Conservation Areas
Is my property in a conservation area?
Detailed maps of each conservation area are on display in the Civic Offices. You are welcome to visit the offices and view the maps or to telephone to speak to a planning officer within normal office hours.
Can I replace windows in a conservation area without planning permission?
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What restrictions apply to a building in a conservation area?
Planning permission can be required for some alterations to properties because they lie within a conservation area. You are welcome to visit the offices or to speak to a planning officer concerning whether your particular proposal will require an application to be made. Remember that 'Conservation Area Consent' is sometimes required for demolition works within a conservation area.
Conservation Areas - A guide to the law and your responsibilities
The Local Planning Authority has a duty to pay special attention to the preservation or enhancement of the character or appearance of a conservation area when considering an application for development. This applies to both development within a conservation area and also to development outside it but close enough to affect its setting.
Particular attention will be given to the scale, design, layout and materials proposed for new development and to its wider impact upon the special character of the conservation area. This will require, for example, the use of appropriate doors and windows and often the use of high quality bricks, tiles and other traditional building materials.
Permitted development rights, which make a planning application unnecessary for some minor alterations and extensions to dwellings, are more restrictive within a conservation area. If your property is a listed building you are also likely to need listed building consent. Before starting work it is advisable to contact the Planning Department to confirm which restrictions apply to your property and what applications you will need to make.
Conservation area consent is required for the demolition of unlisted buildings within a conservation area, including boundary walls. You are advised to contact the Planning Department to confirm whether you will need to make an application for conservation area consent.
It is an offence to cut down, top, lop, uproot or wilfully damage or destroy trees in a conservation area without the consent of the local planning authority and you must give the council six weeks prior notice of any such works to trees. An application form for this purpose is available from the Planning Department.
Pre-application Advice Service
The council will provide pre-application advice free of charge and applicants are encouraged to discuss development proposals informally with planning officers at an early stage.
There are 13 conservation areas in Fareham.
At the eastern end of the Borough, Portchester Castle and Castle Street form a conservation area and on the approach to Fareham the Cams Hall Estate and its landscaped setting have also been designated. In Fareham itself the older parts of the town, High Street, Osborn Road, Town Quay and the nearby village of Wallington are all conservation areas.
In the Meon Valley conservation areas include the villages of Titchfield and Catisfield and Titchfield Abbey, including its historic setting.
Further west, the historic settlements of the Hamble Valley, Sarisbury, Swanwick Shore and Warsash have been designated as conservation areas as has the nearby small rural settlement of Hook.
Conservation Area Character Assessment
The Council is following advice from the Government and English Heritage in undertaking a programme of conservation area character assessment. This will result in the production of an assessment document for each conservation area that will identify its special character. These will be used in the consideration of planning applications and as a basis for preparing enhancement and preservation proposals.
Four assessments have been completed, for Sarisbury Green, Swanwick Shore, Warsash and Hook. A fifth, for Titchfield, is in draft form. The assessments are available to purchase for £3.50 each. Copies are in local libraries and can be inspected at Planning Reception.
A conservation area is described in law as: 'an area of special architectural or historic interest the character or appearance of which it is desirable to preserve or enhance'
Many historic towns and villages have a special character which results from a gradual process of growth and development.
The layout of buildings, roads, paths, trees and open spaces that are essential to their character have often evolved over hundreds of years.
The local materials and traditional techniques that were used in the construction of historic buildings result in a local distinctiveness and individuality which contributes to this special character.
Conservation Areas are designated because they possess a special architectural or historic character and Local Planning Authorities have a statutory duty to identify, designate and review them.
The residents and businesses in a conservation area all have an important part to play in preserving and enhancing the special character that led to designation.
Carefully designed new buildings and extensions, sensitive proposals for new signage and shop fronts and the appropriate reuse of existing buildings can all make a positive contribution to character. Conversely, insensitive development can irreparably damage the special character that the designation seeks to protect.
Contacts
For further information please contact:
The Conservation Manager or the Conservation Officer
Department of Planning and Transportation
Fareham Borough Council
Civic Offices
Civic Way
Fareham
Hampshire
PO16 7TT
Tel: 01329 236100 - Fax: 01329 822732 - Email: conservation@fareham.gov.uk
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