12 C O N T E X T 1 2 5 : J U LY 2 0 1 2 Legal Briefing Heritage aspects of the Localism Act 2011 The Localism Act 2011, aimed at empowering communities, could have significant implications for the ownership and management of heritage assets, writes Tom Deards. The Localism Act 2011 contains measures intended to shift decision-making powers in relation to town and country planning and other controls affecting the built environment to local communities. Assets of community value The act introduces the concept of ‘assets of community value’ for which a local community is given the right to make a bid in the event that the asset is put up for sale. A building or land is of ‘community value’ if, in the opinion of the local authority, its actual current use (or use in the recent past) furthers the social wellbeing or social interests of the local community and it is realistic to think that there can continue to be (or will be again in the next five years) a use which furthers the same. ‘Social interests’ are defined as including cultural, recreational or sporting interests. It seems likely that land or buildings of heritage value will often fall within these definitions and be subject to applications for listing as assets of community value. The measures are designed to encourage community ownership and control of things like village shops and pubs. They clearly fit into the government’s muchdiscussed Big Society agenda. The procedure gives communities a right to identify a building or other land that they believe to be of importance to their community. If the nominated asset meets the definition of an ‘asset of community value’, the local authority must include it in their list of assets of community value (subject to the rights of owners to require an internal review and a right of appeal to an independent tribunal). The aim is that if a listed asset subsequently comes up for sale (or for the grant or assignment of a lease of at least 25 years), community groups (parish councils or other voluntary or community bodies with a local connection) will be given a fair chance to put together a bid to buy it on the open market. Once the asset is listed, the owner will be able to dispose of the asset only after a specified window has expired. The first part of this window is an interim period of six weeks, which will allow community interest groups to express a written intention to bid. Otherwise the owner is free to sell their asset. If a group does express an intention to bid, the full window of six months will operate to give the community group time to put together a formal bid. After that the owner will be free to sell to whomever they choose within the next 12 months (following which they would have to renotify the local authority and give a further opportunity for community groups to put together a bid). The provisions do not place any restriction on what the owner can do with their property, once listed. Nor does this give any power to force the sale of the asset or any right of first refusal to community groups. Nor does it oblige the owner to sell to the community group, even if they make the highest bid. However, if local planning authorities are able to take the simple listing of a particular asset into account as a ‘material consideration’, this could well lead to refusal of planning applications which conflict with the proposed ‘community’ use, and the commercial value of the site could well drop considerably as a result. It is unlikely that this would even count as ‘blight’ under the planning regime for which compensation is payable, although there is compensation for the loss or expense incurred as a result of listing provided for the new regime – the detail of which will appear in new regulations. Local authorities must publish their current lists of assets of community value (both successfully and unsuccessfully nominated), and must provide a free copy to any person who asks for one.The secretary of state has powers to provide financial assistance, training or education in relation to the process of listing, bidding or acquiring assets of community value. Defacement of premises Section 127 of the act introduces new sections 225A–K into theTown and Country Planning Act 1990 to grant new powers for local planning authorities to require landowners to remove bill stickers and graffiti from certain land and buildings. As well as giving local authorities powers to remove structures used for the unauthorised use of advertisements, they can also serve an ‘action notice’ on the owner or occupier of land where there is a ‘persistent problem’ with the display of unauthorised advertisements on a surface of any building, wall, fence or other structure, or any apparatus or plant.This second power is subject to provisions of enactments relating to historic buildings and ancient monuments (for example, consent may still need to be obtained to remove an adhesive bill sticker from a scheduled monument if the removal was likely to damage or alter the appearance of the monument). In addition, local authorities are given powers to require the occupier to remove or obliterate any ‘sign’ (defined as including any writing, letter, picture, device or representation – not including an advertisement) on the surface of a building that is readily visible from a place to which the public has access. It is likely that local planning authorities will come under some pressure to use these new powers, particularly where bill stickers or graffiti appear on heritage land or buildings that are highly valued by the local community.
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