Avenue Campus Development

Please see our Uni Development info hub for everything you need to know about what's happening, and how to make the most effective objection

Other Important links:
Object to tree felling on Avenue campus Forum discussion re: the development University proposal

Character Appraisal and Management Plan

The C.A.M.P.

The City Council adopted a Character Appraisal and Management Plan for the Oakmount Triangle Conservation Area on 17 March, 2008. The document identifies those features which give the area its special character and provides guidance and direction on appropriate forms of development. This guidance should be taken into account when planning applications from the Triangle are determined by the City Council. OTRA played a major part in its preparation and welcomes the new policy which strengthens the designation of the Conservation Area.

View/download C.A.M.P. New draft design guidance

Please note: For up to date advice see the draft Design Guidance. This is not yet formally adopted by the council but we recommend you use this for current information.  Some of the contact information and website links in the original C.A.M.P.  are no longer viable. [Update 20/3/21 we have been informed by SCC heritage officer that there are “lots of discrepancies in the wording, the coverage, and the clarity of the Directions in terms of current planning policy.” In practice this means you are advised to refer to the pages here on the site, the new draft Design Guidance and if in doubt also to contact OTRA when you need something clarified in regard to current policy.

Appendices: Article 4(2)

The appendices refer to the Article 4(2) direction which removes permitted development from designated properties within the Conservation area see here.

NB: Appendix 1 refers to the General Permitted Development Order (GPDO) 1995. This has since been superseded by GPDO 2011 and most recently GPDO 2015 which has some 2020 amendments. These orders refer to planning on a national scale, however the Article 4(2) which covers the Oakmount Triangle removes many of those permitted developments, specifically mentioned in the First Schedule (p.21)

Please note that the reference to Class B of part 31 (1995) is now part C of class 11 (2015). There are other changes TBC.
Download GPDO 2015

C.A.M.P. Glossary

Front or faceCorner plots have 2 frontages and often the rear is visible. Controls extend to the whole length of that frontage whether it is a house or garden. 

If in doubt about anything visible from a highway then please ask advice.
HighwayRoad or public path. This includes Oakmount Avenue, Leigh Road, Blenheim Avenue, Westbourne Crescent, the road in front of 19 Brookvale Road, and Lovers Walk behind any houses in those roads. NB: Lovers Walk is a public highway.
Like for likeRepairs or maintenance that do not introduce any new materials. e.g. repairing a roof using traditional materials, repairing/rebuilding windows or doors using timber (but repainting different colour is acceptable).
Alien materialsAny materials that would not have been used during the original development. e.g. metal garage doors, UPVC windows, plastic rainwater goods and Portland cement instead of lime mortar. Many houses and walls were repointed with cement. This causes water retention within the wall resulting in inevitable frost damage.
CurtilageBoundary of the property including house, garden outbuildings and walls.
StuccoDecorative rendering.
Infillinge.g. adding windows/doors to enclose an open verandah.
Infill developmentBuilding on an existing (empty) plot.

Summary of C.A.M.P.

2020 revised Summary leaflet (printable)

Introduction

Conservation Logo
The City Council adopted a Character Appraisal and Management Plan for the Oakmount Triangle Conservation Area on 17 March, 2008. The document identifies those features which give the area its special character and provides guidance and direction on appropriate forms of development. This guidance must now be taken into account when planning applications from the Triangle are determined by the City Council. OTRA played a major part in its preparation and welcomes the new policy which strengthens the designation of the Conservation Area.

The full document can be found on the City Council’s website www.southampton.gov.uk by searching under ‘Oakmount’, or can be downloaded here.

If you would like a printed copy please contact us here.

All of us appreciate and value the special character of the Triangle and want to see it protected from unsuitable and unsympathetic change. While the guidance in the Character Appraisal and Management Plan does not prevent modernisation and improvement of homes, it helps us to appreciate those features of our homes which are most important in giving the area its character. It gives guidance on how the changes and improvements we wish to make can be done in ways that are sympathetic and appropriate to the area as a whole, while ensuring that the changes which we make do not inadvertently and cumulatively erode the Triangle’s special appeal.

Factors Contributing to the Triangle’s Special Character

These include:

  • Street views of traditional-style brick garden walls overhung with a variety of mature shrubs and ornamental trees.
  • Predominance in older houses of red bricks and pebbledash render beneath clay-tiled roof.
  • Gables over tile-hung bay windows, prominent chimneys, verandahs with painted wood balustrades.
  • Many original casement windows (with toplights and generously projecting details).
  • Decorative front doors.

Threats to the Character of the Area Identified in the Character Appraisal

  • Unsympathetic infill development (new builds).
  • The cumulative impact of minor changes by householders removing or changing the features listed above as contributing to the area’s character.

The most damaging of these ‘minor changes’ are the removal of garden walls and the replacement of front gardens with hard-standing for cars, with the consequent loss of the trees and shrubs so important in the street scene. Other significant changes are the removal of chimneys, alterations to roofs and unsympathetic replacement windows.

Planning Permission

Most of the older properties in the Conservation Area were included in the Article 4 (2) Direction made by the City Council in 2005. See map here. This means that owners must obtain planning permission before undertaking what might seem to be simple maintenance or  minor works, but which might nonetheless affect the character and appearance of the property. See here for our guide  to  the  changes which may require permission.

Homeowners considering improvements or undertaking maintenance work should find the Character Appraisal and Management Plan helpful in identifying features of their homes which contribute to the area’s special character and find guidance on what might be considered sympathetic and appropriate ways to undertake maintenance and make alterations.

* Written answers to planning queries can be obtained by completing the City Council’s form Do I need Planning Permission? obtainable on the City’s website or from the Gateway in the Civic Centre.

* (TBC) this may no longer be the process. 

C.A.M.P. Updates, revisions, corrections and clarifications

OTRA conservation committee is currently reviewing the CAMP. We are posting revisions here as they are confirmed and approved.

  • p12. “Any alteration to a roof including replacement of roof coverings.” Recycled reclaimed rosemary tiles are encouraged Roofers should mix in any new tiles randomly. Hips, ridges valleys etc. should conform with existing traditional materials and designs.  Solar panels are covered by different regulations and permission is needed to install solar panels on the front of the house. Permission is not required for the side (even when visible) Normal restrictions apply see GPDO2015.
  • p13 “Planning applications needed solely as a result of the Direction will be exempt from the payment of a fee.” This is no longer the case. The fee for planning applications is now £206.
  • p16. “The Direction affects all houses within the Conservation Area,” added: except those listed in Appendix I (2nd Schedule). See article 4 map.
  • p18. “New developments will be encouraged to conform to door and window designs already found in the Triangle.
 The use of white and muted colours will be encouraged.” Change the second sentence to the use of white and muted colours for window frames will be encouraged
  • p18 “Removal of existing gates and gateposts will be resisted.” Removal of existing gates and gateposts which are traditional or in keeping with the character of the Oakmount Triangle will be resisted.

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