Woolton Hall Fire is a wake-up call says Lib Dem Leader

Cllr Carl Cashman has called for a common-sense approach to heritage listing in the wake of a devastating fire in South Liverpool.

Last night a fire engulfed the 18th-century Grade I listed property in Woolton, which is devastating for the whole community of Woolton, and this has prompted the Leader of the Opposition to call for Liverpool to lead the way in having a “common sense” approach for listed buildings to protect them from arson and neglect.

This is the second fire to hit Woolton Hall after arson left an adjoining building within the grounds in a dangerous and unstable state in 2019. The site is listed as a Category A risk by Historic England.

Cllr Cashman has argued that listed buildings high on Historic England's risk register need to have a recovery plan on how they will be safeguarded and developed for the future. He also says that often decisions about getting buildings listed are not representative of the feeling in local communities and stall progress. 

He recognised that many councils’ building control departments are under-resourced and cannot keep up with a lot of the pressures that listed buildings require and has called on the Government to step up and provide additional support to local authorities who need it.

Cllr Carl Cashman, Leader of the Opposition, said:

“In pursuit of protecting listed buildings, we have ultimately created an environment where developers do nothing and let these buildings decay and decline. Then before you know it there’s a fire.

“It is a matter of public record that local Liberal Democrats have pursued the council’s planning department, including holding meetings on site, to do more to have this building protected and restored.

“As a heritage building owner you have an even greater duty to protect and look after your property, that goes beyond the average homeowner - you have bought a piece of history that you need to look after - now that’s a burden but it’s also a privilege. 

“We need a serious crackdown on arson of heritage buildings - not just in Liverpool but across the country. Important historic buildings are being destroyed because they’re just being left to rot. 

“We need a common sense approach for dealing with listed buildings that protects our history and heritage, involves the community and gives developers scope to restore these buildings. Woolton Hall could have been renovated into lovely new homes.”

Whilst certainly not the case for Woolton Hall, because the local Woolton Society was formed to fight to save Woolton Hall, The Lib Dem Leader said that there are also listing decisions that are made without the consent of the local community and ones that do not benefit the local community. 

Cllr Cashman continued:

“The old Abbey Cinema in my ward in Wavertree stands out to me as an example of a building that has been listed against the wishes of the local community. This has made redeveloping the building extremely difficult.

“In the instances of the Abbey the Government should allow local communities to take the decision to remove listed status so that redevelopment can occur and we can get something there that will actually benefit the community.

“We cannot be afraid of change in our communities. We need to be willing to accept that if we want to keep heritage buildings that we need our communities to work with developers to renovate and restore them. Where this is not right for the community we should be able to take action and use a common sense approach.”