Local Listed Building Consent Orders (LLBCOs) are a legal measure which allows the Council to grant listed building consent for alterations to more than one listed building, including groups of listed buildings in all or part of the borough, or buildings of a particular description. This is a pro-active and blanket grant of listed building consent, which means that owners of those listed buildings specified in the Order will not have to make individual applications, but will be able to proceed with the works, provided they comply with any conditions that may be attached to the Order.

The Council wishes to create a LLBCO covering certain works to windows in listed buildings.  If taken forward it would allow the installation of secondary glazing to any window, and installation of double-glazed windows or double glazed sealed units within existing frames in certain circumstances.  These circumstances would be where the window to be replaced or altered is itself a replacement or a new window in an extension, installed after the date of listing and with the benefit of listed building consent.  The consented works would apply to all Grade II buildings within the borough.  Similar works to Grade II* and Grade I buildings would still require an application for listed building consent.

The intention of the Order is to give a very clear signal to residents and businesses that we take seriously the need to drive down carbon use and are prepared to be proactive in achieving this.  This could encourage more building owners to act proactively too, rather than being deterred by the consent process.  The draft Order contains conditions to ensure that the window works are sensitively designed, to ensure  they would not have a harmful visual effect on the building itself or the wider area. 

The draft Order in this consultation sets out more information about the buildings to which this consent would apply, and a list of conditions that would need to be complied with.  It also incudes a  ‘statement of reasons’, which sets out our assessment of the likely effect of the proposed works on the special architectural or historic interest of the listed buildings to which the Order would relate, and a reasoned justification for making the Order.  The Order is proposed to last for 5 years at the outset and may be extended if is successful.  

Changes to windows in listed buildings is a sensitive issue, and so we are particularly interested to hear whether the scope and conditions of the Order retains sufficient protection.  On the other hand, you may think that more changes could potentially be allowed without risk of harm; for instance, reglazing larger historic sashes with few or no glazing bars with more energy efficient glass in single glazed or very slim double glazed form.  We would like to hear from you about this idea, and your thoughts on building types or specific buildings where this could be done.

This consultation will run for eight weeks from 14^th November to 11:59pm on 9^th January 2023.