Heritage Consultants in Durham

As one of the north of England’s pre-eminent cathedral cities, Durham is a famously charming and beautiful place to live. From the imposing towers of the ancient cathedral to the familiar drum tower of the castle, Durham has many distinctive and characterful streets and sites from throughout its history. But while this makes the city a great place to live and visit, it can be troublesome for anyone looking to make alterations to a building, particularly close to the old town itself. When it’s come time to alter or extend a building, it therefore pays to have knowledge and experience of getting successful planning applications passed in sensitive heritage areas, which is why you need to speak to Blue Willow Heritage.

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Blue Willow Heritage is a historic environment consultancy with extensive experience in working with a wide variety of historic buildings and places across the north of England, from domestic dwellings all the way through to large schools and even whole town plans. As well as extensive knowledge of the role heritage plays in the planning system, Blue Willow Heritage offers a collaborative approach to consultancy that takes into account the client’s needs as well as the needs of the building and of the local council. This in-depth understanding of how all the processes work, and how councils make decisions, allows for the creation of intelligent and practical proposals that are simply more likely to be passed, and passed more quickly.

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A further benefit of working with Blue Willow Heritage is an approach to historic buildings that goes far beyond simple compliance, and making sure the right boxes are ticked. Our expert team of consultants can work with your project all the way from the early drawing board, right through to breaking ground and past the last coat of paint to make sure you have everything you need for a successful conclusion. We offer pragmatic and useful advice at all stages to add real value to your project, whether in the form of design advice and pointers or help in submitting documents and liaising with the planning team and conservation officers. We can also prepare a wide range of documentation to ensure any and all planning conditions are satisfied, from Heritage Impact Assessments and Listed Building Consent all the way to Historic Building Recordings and Local Area Character Appraisals: whatever your project needs to get the best outcome.

We work across the north of England including the city of Durham, as well as the surrounding area and nearby towns and villages such as; Chester-Le-Street, Stanley, Lanchester, Consett, Wolsingham, Bishop Auckland, Newton Aycliffe, Sedgefield and Peterlee. Thanks to our years of experience in working in these communities, we have relationships with the local authorities and knowledge of local history and architecture that allows us to work more quickly and more effectively to bring your project to a positive conclusion.

If you’re attempting works to a historic building in Durham and you need help with planning, or you just don’t know where to start, get in touch with us at Blue Willow Heritage. We’re the experts who can help turn a no into a yes.