St John's Church, Redhill, Surrey
7 - Pre-commencement archaeological conditions were attached to a planning permission
Pre-commencement archaeological conditions were attached to a planning permission and were necessary in order to enable the development to be permitted.
Undesignated heritage assets with archaeological and historic interest
Construction of a detached church hall.
The site was a graveyard that commenced use in 1843, and officially closed in 1896. Some family plots remained in use, however, after this time.
A planning application was made for the construction of a new church hall. No pre-determination evaluation was carried out in view of the good level of documentation available for the graveyard. An archaeological planning condition was attached to the planning permission. Subsequent to the permission being granted the developer commissioned an evaluation to determine the extent of the remains and the level of risk.
The footprint of the new building was therefore evaluated after the determination of the planning application, revealing a series of well- preserved regularly spaced burials including a comparatively high number of young children.
The removal of the human remains was necessary in advance of the construction of the new church hall. An excavation of the development footprint was subsequently carried out, and a post-excavation assessment produced.
The excavation and assessment had identified that the site contained an unusually high percentage of juvenile burials, probably related to a nearby workhouse. Because of this, and the restricted date range of the cemetery, Historic England considered that the site was of regional significance.
The Parochial Church Council questioned the need for the further analytical work recommended in the post-excavation assessment report and it was discovered that the archaeological condition had been discharged following the evaluation, against the advice of the archaeological adviser to the LPA.
The Parish subsequently decided not to fund any further work as it was felt that sufficient money had already been spent on archaeology and, as the condition had been discharged, it was argued there were no moral, legal or contractual obligations to provide further funds to complete the project. Although the Local Authority acknowledged there had been an error, they were unable to require that the analysis was carried out.
Some osteological work is now being carried out by undergraduates at Reading University.
- AOC Archaeology 2014, St John the Evangelist Church, Redhill, Surrey, An Archaeological Evaluation Report. Unpublished report.
- AOC Archaeology 2016, St John the Evangelist Church, Redhill, Surrey, Post Excavation Assessment Report. Unpublished report.
