Council Retrospectively Approves Removal of Camden Park Meadow's Historic Railings - After They Were Already Gone

Tunbridge Wells Borough Council has retrospectively approved the removal of historic iron railings along the edge of Camden Park Meadow - a decision Members themselves acknowledged won't resolve the actual complaint residents raised: the close-boarded fence put up in the railings' place.

The railings bordering Camster, a property on Camden Park, were taken down without planning permission - the application considered by councillors on 30 September was to approve that removal retrospectively, not to approve what replaced it. Four objectors spoke against the application, including Patrick Durr on behalf of the Friends of Camden Park Meadow, and the local ward councillor, Richard Brown, who registered an interest, spoke against the scheme, then left the chamber for the vote.

Objectors argued the railings were part of the area's heritage precisely because of what they protected: the openness of Camden Park Meadow, identified in the conservation area appraisal as central to its significance. Officers agreed it was "difficult to see how removing the iron railings was not linked to" the fence that replaced them - but were clear that the fence itself wasn't what the committee was being asked to decide. The view of the meadow, Members were advised, is not a material planning consideration under the relevant heritage policy, and the railings themselves aren't identified in the conservation area appraisal, so their removal was found not to cause harm in planning terms.

Councillors voted 5 in favour, 2 against and 1 abstention to grant the application. Several Members raised concern that the retrospective nature of the application showed "a disregard for the planning process" and said they didn't want to set a precedent for removing historic features first and seeking permission afterwards - but concluded that wasn't, in itself, grounds to refuse. Members noted that any ongoing concern about the replacement fence would fall to the council's planning enforcement team to consider separately, since it wasn't part of the application before them.

Source: Tunbridge Wells Borough Council