A public notice of changes to the boundary of the Romsey conservation Area has been given.

After a public consultation meeting was held in January this year by Test Valley Borough Council, it was decided that amendments to the current area would be made by removing some currently listed places and buildings whilst adding others.

The review of the Conservation boundary considered whether the areas were of special architectural or historic interest, and whether it is desirable to preserve or enhance the character or appearance.

Some of the places being removed from the list are Riverside Gardens, the Bus and Coach Station and Edwina Mountbatten House which was founded in memory of the 1st Countess Mountbatten of Burma and is now a care home in dedication to the good work carried out by the Countess.

The War Memorial Park, Plaza Theatre and the entire property boundary to The Cromwell Arms, Mainstone, will be added.

The importance of the boundary is that places within it must be preserved or enhanced by the council.

It is a criminal offence to demolish a building without planning permission in a conservation area and particular publicity must be given to all planning applications. Six weeks’ notice must also be given to the council for any work carried out on trees.

The special interests considered by the council when making changes to the Romsey area are due to the historic character and appearance of the town.

The buildings which line the streets retain their narrow plot boundaries and the buildings themselves date from across the centuries.

Romsey’s Memorial Park was gifted to the town after the First World War and contains several important war memorials.

The revised boundary and accompanying Conservation Area Appraisal and Management Plan may be found here by visiting https://www.testvalley.gov.uk/planning-and-building/heritage/conservationarea.