Conservation

The Conservation Officer is responsible for advice and guidance on the historic environment of the District. Key areas covered are Conservation Areas and Listed Buildings, the creation and upkeep of the Local List, and Buildings at Risk Register.

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Conservation Areas

A Conservation Area is defined as an area designated by the Council, which is considered to be an area of special architectural and/ historic interest, the appearance of which it is desirable to preserve or enhance.

In the Wyre Forest District there are 16 Conservation Areas. One is within Bewdley town centre, four are within Stourport-on-Severn, three are located in Kidderminster, seven are based on settlements within the rural areas and the other is the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal which runs through urban and rural areas, including parts of Kidderminster and Stourport-on-Severn town centres. Learn more about the District Conservation Areas or download a guide to conservation areas   (1079K) for more information.

Listed Buildings

Statutory Listed Buildings

A Statutory Listed Building is one that has been given legal protection by the Secretary of State. They are usually protected as being of rare and fine examples of a particular style or type of building or structure. The listing of buildings is carried out by English Heritage. There are in the region of 1000 Statutory Listed Buildings in the Wyre Forest District. Learn more about Statutory Listed Buildings or download a guide to Listed Buildings  (469K).

Locally Listed Buildings

The District Council produces a list of local buildings which are not statutory listed but are recognised as being of local interest, either for their historical associations or architectural style, this list has no connection to the statutory list mentioned above.

For more information on the Local List visit the Locally Listed Buildings page.

Buildings at Risk Survey

The Buildings at Risk survey is carried out by the District Council, and looks at the condition and occupancy of the Listed Buildings within the District. This information enables us to monitor buildings that are vacant and/or in a poor state of repair, to try and encourage owners to bring them back in to occupancy and a good state of repair. This will have a positive impact on the character and appearance of many of the historic parts of the District. The last survey was carried out in 2005, and covered Kidderminster, Stourport on Severn and Bewdley.