Heritage Alliance members the Victorian Society and SAVE Britain’s Heritage are among organisations urging the public to sign a petition asking the Government to give interim protection to buildings proposed for listing.
The move comes after a Bristol former town house’s elaborate Jacobean ceiling was deliberately destroyed by a developer before Historic England could assess the building for listing.
Interim protection is among the changes we argue for in our Heritage Manifesto. It would mean that a building is treated as listed until Historic England has determined whether it should be listed.
The latest incident follows the demolition of the Carlton Tavern before listing in 2016. 2016 also saw the partial demolition of a 16th century Inn in Kent, due to become a McDonalds, before it could be listed. Perhaps the most famous example is the demolition of the art deco 1928 Firestone Factory in Brentford – demolished over a weekend before then minister Michael Heseltine listed the building.