New management plans to be debated for conservation areas deemed 'at risk' by Historic England

An extraordinary council meeting is to be held to debate new management plans for two "at risk" conservation areas following concerns being raised.

Earlier this year Hartlepool Borough Council consulted with residents as part of work to draw up new management plans for the Headland and Seaton Carew conservation areas. Both the conservation areas are currently deemed "at risk" by Historic England.

The documents were approved by the council's adult and community based services committee at their November meeting, where it was also agreed an advisory group be set up to help assist on any issues. However an extraordinary meeting of the full council has now been called to debate the conservation area management plans by a number of Conservative and independent councillors.

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It will take place at the Civic Centre at 7pm on Thursday (November 28). Councillor Shane Moore, Independent Union representative, one of those who signed the motion calling for the debate, raised concerns over the plans at the meeting earlier in November.

He voiced his worries around the documents' lack of support for modern materials and in particular uPVC windows on the Headland, which he said can now be made in a style "sympathetic" to the area. This issue was raised by residents during the consultation and has been debated at numerous planning committee meetings, with the timber windows found in conservation area properties often more expensive to maintain and less heat efficient.

At the previous meeting, Cllr Moore had called for the documents to be referred to full council, but this failed to gather the committee's support. The documents, developed using external funding, aim to outline ways to ensure the "preservation and enhancement" of the locations and feature the latest guidance from the likes of Historic England.

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