C O N T E X T 1 7 4 : D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 2 3 for pre-application discussions. To counteract these, we urgently need good case studies showing where and how regulatory involvement has added value, and for all conservation officers to have the skills and knowledge to provide it. If you can think of good case studies, please send them to jpreston@phonecoop.coop. How many Context readers take part in Open Eco Homes, Green Doors or similar schemes? I urge you to take any such opportunities, if only to challenge your own perceptions. I went on a Cambridge Open Eco Homes visit to a very thoughtprovoking ‘Deep green, 17th-century retrofit’ in Suffolk, about which I will write in a future issue. The Energy Security Strategy also promotes solar: ‘For rooftop solar, we will bring down bills and increase jobs by radically simplifying planning processes with a consultation on relevant permitted development rights and will consider the best way to make use of public-sector rooftops.’ Difficulties in getting permission for solar photovoltaics were raised by a number of owners in the roundtable I attended. Some think that the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea’ s listed building order, which gives consent for solar panels on most Grade II and II* listed buildings, will set a precedent. But a location behind the parapet of a London town house is very different to most historic roofs, which are highly visible and have characteristic irregularities of colour and texture. A hybrid application (external parts planning permission, the whole under faculty jurisdiction) is now under consideration for one of the most exceptional behind-theparapet roofs of all: King’s College Chapel, Cambridge. Have a look at application number 22/03811/ FUL, at https://applications. greatercambridgeplanning.org/ online-applications/ John Preston is heritage chair of the Sustainable Traditional Buildings Alliance and vice chair of the IHBC policy committee. St Stephen’s stonework cleaned A major project to clean and repair the ceiling of St Stephen’s Hall in the Palace of Westminster has been completed. The work is part of a wider programme of works of repair and replacement of stonework, and mechanical and electrical systems. A latex coating was applied to the ceiling, which was dried before being peeled away, removing decades of pollution damage. The surveying and specification of works was undertaken by architects Donald Insall Associates and structural engineers Alan Baxter. The conservation work was carried out by DBR, overseen by Parliament’s in-house teams, including conservation architects and the Heritage Collections team. St Stephen’s Hall stands on the site of the former royal Chapel of St Stephen.When the king moved away to the Palace of Whitehall, this is where the House of Commons sat until it was destroyed by fire in 1834. It was rebuilt into the present hall by Sir Charles Barry. Marble statues of 12 parliamentarians face one another on either side of the hall, positioned between eight monumental oil paintings that depict events in British history. The Saving the Last Major Bellfoundry in Britain Project has invited a specialist museum and heritage fit-out contractor to develop the interpretation of Loughborough Bellfoundry’s refreshed museum. The museum is located in the still-operational Grade II* listed bellfoundry buildings in the heart of Loughborough, Leicestershire. The Loughborough Bellfoundry, built in 1859 and also known as John Taylor’s Bellfoundry, is the last major bellfoundry in the UK and Commonwealth. Part of the cleaned ceiling of St Stephen’s Hall (Photo: UK Parliament/Jessica Taylor)
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