I have just been reading through the details of a management plan to ‘protect, reserve and enhance’ the long-term future of Bath’s unique heritage and safeguard the city’s twice-inscribed UNESCO World Heritage status.
It’s going to be considered by the B&NES Cabinet at their meeting on Thursday, November 14th. To give it its full title it’s the “draft City of Bath and Great Spa Towns of Europe combined World Heritage Site Management Plan (2024-2030)” and, if you have the time, makes a fascinating read.
Issues like giving permissionm for solar panels to be put on listed buildings – and the question of a Tourist Tax – are amongst the issues discussed.
World Heritage Sites (WHS) are inscribed and overseen by UNESCO which requires each site to produce a management plan, renewed every six years. The plan must describe what the site consists of, why it is of global significance, how it is managed, what challenges it faces and how these will be addressed.
Bath is one of only 22 sites out of 1,223 worldwide to achieve a double inscription: City of Bath (1987) and Great Spa Towns of Europe (2021) and the report before cabinet says the benefits it brings are substantial, including economic. It also notes it is the first ever combined management plan to include two inscriptions.
I will give you a link to the report at the end of this article but, to whet your appetite, will just provide some fascinating facts l have noted down following my read through.
One of the reasons the Romans settled here two thousand years ago was to utilise our three naturally hot springs and create a bathing establishment – the ruins of which are now visited by more than a millions people a year.
Factor in our city’s setting, its Georgian architecture, spa facilities and social history – it’s no surprise we welcome five million visitors a year – who bring an estimated 470 million to the local econpmy – and hope to accommodate many of them in 80 hotels, 180 B and B’s and 174 guesthouses with a total of 6,281 bed spaces
We have 5,000 listed buiildings – the highest total anywhere outside of London. The Bath area is home to 8, 500 businesses – employing around 92,000 people.
Bath’s World Heritage, including preparation of the Management Plan, is managed through an Advisory Board which brings together 33 representatives from 21 organisations. The board is convened and supported by Bath & North East Somerset Council and is chaired independently. The current chair is Professor Marion Harney.
Councillor Matt McCabe, Cabinet Member for Built Environment, Housing and Sustainable Development, said: “The UNESCO World Heritage Site inscription remains a highly respected global brand – and Bath has two inscriptions. It means we have to carefully balance the needs of a unique site with all the demands of modern living.
The proposed plan before cabinet sets out a clear vision and it details actions to ensure the effective management, protection and sustainable development of the World Heritage Site for present and future generations.”
The plan sets out actions to address climate change, development, the public realm, traffic, transport and mobility, promotion, interpretation, inclusion and presentation and the natural setting and nature recovery.
Among the 47 actions set out in the draft plan are proposals to; improve access by more sustainable modes of travel; increasing the diversity and inclusivity of the WHS audience; and continuing to explore options for a visitor tax or levy as part of a more sustainable tourism approach which other European cities have adopted.
Listed buildings are amongst those which will need to be adapted to improve insulation and install renewable energy systems. For instance, the roofs of Georgian buildings commonly have a central, hidden valley which offers scope for installing solar panels without compromising their historic appearance and character, and this approach has proven successful in Edinburgh.
To assist homeowners, a Local Listed Building Consent Order is being progressed by Bath and North East Somerset Council that would remove the need for listed building consent for installation in adefined area on buildings and to meet certain criteria, carefully identified as being appropriate for this initiative. An action is included to support this pioneering approach.
An aspect of the negative impact of tourism is through the wear and tear on the public realm and the refuse created by millions of visitors. European sites routinely address this by charging a visitor tax on overnight stays and re-investing this in public realm maintenance.
In the UK, local authorities cannot set such a tax without the authorisation of Parliament and during the previous plan period discussions have been held attempting to achieve this. This matter has become highly politicised and is not directly in local control but is rolled forward as an aspiration.
The cabinet is asked to endorse the draft City of Bath and Great Spa Towns of Europe World Heritage Site Management Plan (2024-2030) for formal public engagement and agree the approach to public engagement when it meets on Thursday November 14.
You can read the full report here and watch the meeting on the council’s Youtube channel.
So are most of the posts on Nèxtdoor just ‘ background noise ‘ to which I’ve contributed. 🤔
I live in a flat which is on the ground floor straight onto Morford Street and is one of several Grade 2 listed Georgian buildings.
The traffic coming up and down Morford Street has dramatically increased since I moved here over seventeen years ago and is actively affected by noise, particulate and volume of traffic.
Having broken my femur nearly a year ago, and still in recovery my negotiating of the road needs me to get assistance to cross it.
When I asked for a traffic survey to get some data to support a potential Court application to challenge B&NES decision to deny my request ( on the grounds it wasn’t planned in any of the council’s current traffic management activities 🙄 and linked to the Winifred Lane area LTRN, I joined the Campaign to challenge the council’s plans as they are already affecting detrimentally the volume speed type of vehicles
( lorries buses coaches bikes electric scooters etc )
We are also seeing many more pedestrians using Morford Street as access to the local primary school St Andrew’s just off Julian Road from Lower Lansdown including Morford Street itself and the Curo social housing of Lampards Buildings and the huge Balance Street complex, even Snowhill Paragon Cleveland Bridge area, London Road Camden and Larkhall.
Has this been given any priority in the council’s UNESCO plan for Bath.🤫😒🙄 me thinks not.
Suddenly a traffic monitoring data collection point has been installed outside my property with no letter or email to me.
Exactly what I request in the Spring and denied as mentioned previously in this missive, challenged by me in late August/September and now installed in November.
Perhaps Nextdoor and Newseum are changing the minds of the Council after all.
Thank you both.
Watch this space