Public Awareness ..... Continued One of the Conservation Areas, as well as the greatest concentration of Grade A listed buildings, is New Lanark the Utopian model industrial village. New Lanark, however, is largely irrelevant to this article as it does not appear to have raised the conservation ethic in other settlements. In addition, if the buildings are not owned by New Lanark Conservation Trust or its sister organisation, New Lanark Association, they have been sold by these organisations to private owners who are bound by very strict restrictions within the title deeds. The "communications gap" scenario is not, therefore, relevant. The two central planks of the programme are:- 1. the development of information bases. 2. The promotion of public awareness. 1. INFORMATION BASES The Manpower Services Commission was responsible for undertaking much of the work over an 18 month period during 1986/7. The project team was of course briefed and under the supervision of the planning staff. (a) Photographic Archive The section now has an archive of 7,000 slides covering all listed buildings within the Conservation Areas. With the "back broken" of what would have been an insurmountable task for the staff of the section, the archive can now be updated and improved. The photographic archive has many uses. (i) a record in time. (ii) basis for improving recommendations on formal applications. (iii) basis for enforcement. (iv) basis for monitoring condition and uses and of course the preparation of a Buildings at Risk Register. (v) promotional/educational roles, whether for public consumption or presentation to Committee. (vi) basis for improvements, whether related to grant work, town schemes or paint schemes. (b) Sources Archive This is relatively undeveloped and only consists of secondary sources as opposed to the research of primary records. The immediate availability of extracts, old photographs, old maps, historical information, has already proved useful and it is obvious that this should be developed. Positive feedback from the public has already led to donations of hitherto unpublished material. 2. PUBLIC AWARENESS The initial steps towards the promotion of public awareness haye primarily concentrated on a sequence of publications. A number of other measures have also been undertaken as part of the programme. (a) Publications A programme of ten information leaflets is envisaged from October 1985 to the end of 1988. Design guidance will follow on two topics. Every owner of a listed building and all the properties in conservation areas have been circulated by hand delivery. All changes of owners will be "caught" by the Property Clearance Scheme administered through the Planning Division. The circulation system is intended to make it difficult for any property owner to argue ignorance of the law. As the provisions extend well beyond the statutory framework for notification, there is now a strong "moral" justification to attempts to obtain approval for enforcement action. It is my opinion that the lack of an individual notification system for owners in conservation areas is a deficiency which must be addressed. Similarly, the official notice in respect of listing is dry and uncommunicative and is often lost or not passed on to subsequent owners. The absence of registration of listing in the title deeds ( an administrative decision taken m the late Planning in Clydesdale 4 •. : ~~~'--·-~~----•.•·.1·., !~M• Clydesdale COULTER District Conservation t,Jl 1 Council Area 1940's) is remarkable, given the significant legal burdens placed on an owner of a listed building and it contrasts with other aspects of social planning controls, most notably Tree Preservation Orders. In addition, the Council published a book "Historic Buildings in Clydesdale in 1987". This is the first publication aimed at the heritage of the District. Extensive publicity was gained at the launch and the momentum has been maintained by the display of a touring exhibition, not only throughout the District but in Edinburgh and Glasgow. 11111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111 i 11111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111 AllHI111l1liflTI11llRIDI111111111111111111111111111 3
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