and east, established by the strata in the Yoredale series of rocks and these have been adopted as the boundary of the conservation area. This juxta-position of a built up area of a settlement with its rural setting clearly defined geologically and all able to be legitimately regarded (for different reasons) as 'special' in conservation area terms, occurs very rarely. We have looked so far at two cases where the issues of setting and views of a conservation area have quit_e different but wide interpretations. The third example involves the opposite situation. The Conservation Area covers the whole 31 mile length of a canal through a number of authorities (my appraisal of it required boots and a rucksack!) but includes generally only the canal and the towpath. No official appraisal had been made of the character and appearance of the conservation area and the issue of its setting was only raised when a planning application for a commercial use for the site of a carpark (formerly occupied by an institutional use) immediately outside it was being considered. Much of the Conservation Area ran through a suburban area, for which it provided a sylvan, semi-rural corridor. There was a closely spaced line of trees at the back of the towpath adjacent to the site in question, separating it (but not hiding it) from the canal. The matter was eventually decided at appeal and the inspector concluded that the towpath trees and the proposed planting on the site itself would enhance the character and appearance of the Conservation Area. In other words although the site was next to the Conservation Area, the application did not affect its setting. Conclusions There are of course many other possi Context54 June1997 ble relationships between conservation areas and their settings. These are just examples. Durham illustrates very clearly and better than most the importance, in some cases, of topography and geomorphology in determining the extent of the setting of a conservation area and the views of it from surrounding quite ordinary areas. Askrigg on the other hand demonstrates that, although it is not usually the case, the setting can justify inclusion within the conservation area itself. (Somelocal plans refer to key strategic views of buildings of the importance of say) Westminster Abbey) St Pauls etc. but make no reference to more local views of conservation areas) This does not mean, however, that the concept of the setting of a conservation area automatically includes any fields which may be on the edge of it. It is the physical and townscape relationship which is important The canal case is in direct contrast to Durham and Askrigg. It did SIRTITUS not exist in isolation from the outside world and this case illustrates that for all normal forms of development, the setting of some conservation areas has little or no impact outside the designated boundary. As with the overall appraisal of character and appearance, the practical use of the concept of setting and key views of a conservation area is usually on a site by site basis. There are two important principles to achieve this most effectively. First the matter of setting should be dealt with objectively as part of the appraisal of the character and appearance of the conservation area. This avoids the potential challenge, as may also occur if the appraisal itself has been treated similarly, that it has only became an important issue once the particular development proposal has been submitted. Askrigg makes the point very clearly that the assessment of the setting of a conservation area should be done as part of an area of investigation rather than just drawing a boundary before the designation exercise starts. Although more are being prepared, there is still a long way to go before all 9000+ conservation areas have an appraisal. Setting should also be identified as an element of the conservation strategy in the local plan. Some local plans refer to key strategic views of buildings of the importance of say, Westminster Abbey, St Pauls etc. but make no reference to more local views of conservation areas. Secondly, the actual task of defining the setting and views must by contrast be basically by subjective judgement taking account of factors such as geo- and urban-morphology and landscape. These should be elements in the overall appraisal of the character and appearance of the conservation area anyway and the ideal time to make the assessment of setting and views is while that is being pre- - pared. 23
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