Campaigners lose battle to rescue Bourne’s Bridge 234
HISTORIANS and conservationists have lost their fight to prevent the Midland & Great Northern Joint Railway’s Victorian Bridge 234 in Bourne from being demolished.
The classic three-arch overbridge built in 1890 served as a gateway to the Lincolnshire market town, which owes much of its 20th-century development to it once being a four-way junction. The closure of the Bourne station to passengers on March 2, 1959, along with the line from Saby to King’s Lynn, marked a watershed moment in UK transport history, because it was the first time that BR had closed a complete system, that of the MGNJR, as opposed to individual lines, and sent shockwaves through the rail industry – two years before Dr Richard Beeching was appointed as BR chairman.
Bridge 234 was the last publiclyaccessible and significant railway-built structure surviving in Bourne. For the past five years, Bourne History Group had spearheaded moves to save it.
Appeal upheld
However, in later May, the Planning Inspectorate upheld an appeal by Bellway Homes Ltd (Eastern Counties) against South Kesteven District Council’s planning committee’s decision made on September 16 last year to refuse permission for a ‘pocket park’ and children’s play area on the site of the bridge adjacent to the town’s Elsea Park housing estate, on the grounds that its design did not go far enough to protecting the heritage on site. The developer said it would conserve the heritage aspect by using bricks from the demolished bridge to lay out a piazza in the pocket park and build planters to mark its position.
As reported in issue 285 of Heritage Railway, councillors voted 8-1 against the advice of a planning officer to approve the scheme but invited the developer to meet with them so that solutions might be discussed.
Bellway, which has permission to build 373 homes on the surrounding land, began clearing the site – that had in recent times become an unofficial and vast natural wildlife haven – immediately after the committee meeting, but left the bridge untouched as new roads and foundations for the houses were laid. At the time of the decision by planning inspector Edwin Maund, who visited the site on April 26, the bridge was surrounded on three sides by partially-constructed homes.
In allowing Bellway’s appeal, Mr Maund said the council had already agreed to the demolition of the bridge, provided that a Level 4 Historic Building Recording should be undertaken by the developer and submitted to the local planning authority beforehand, and therefore the committee’s refusal contradicted that earlier decision. “The concerns from many interested parties who have expressed strong objections to the loss of Bridge 234 and to the heritage interests this represents is not before me in considering this appeal, and these concerns do not influence the conclusions I have reached on the limited matter of the landscape details.
Wasted expense
Mr Maund also ordered the council to reimburse Bellway for the costs of the appeal. “In choosing to ignore the planning officer’s advice, the elected members must have regard to clear reasoning for doing so and cannot ignore the decisions previously made,” he said.
“While they are entitled to make a different decision, it must have a sound and reasoned basis which is patently lacking under the circumstances of this case. I therefore find that unreasonable behaviour, resulting in unnecessary or wasted expense as described in Planning Practice Guidance, has been demonstrated and that an award of costs is justified.”
Bourne History Group chairman Steve Giullari provided a detailed submission to the appeal, arguing that the cross-party councillors’ rejection of design for the pocket park conformed to both local and national planning guidelines, and was fully justified because further and better particulars about the heritage of Bridge 234 had come to light since the previous decision was made.
Petition
In the past year, more than 2000 people signed a petition calling for the bridge to be saved, and about 100 local people volunteered to carry out repair work on the structure if campaigners managed to set up a charitable trust to undertake maintenance at no cost to the council or residents’ groups.
Steve said: “The Bridge 234 campaign has felt like a cup run, losing the final to one decision by one referee. However, despite the outcome, the bridge will always live on as it has now become the symbol of strength and unity.
“It is my hope that other towns around our country take strength from our determination to protect heritage and to create balance. It is also our hope that you continue to fight for your heritage, wherever you are, because our Bridge 234 is your Bridge 234, and we want our symbol to be your symbol. May the fight continue!”