Much of the housing that we have in our neighbourhood dates from the 19th Century and sits within the Russell Street/Castle Hill Conservation Area. Conservation area status is designated to areas with special architectural or historic interest. In addition we have a number of listed buildings, a building with listed status is given legal protection from being changed without receiving permission from the local planning authority.
The very high demand for housing in Reading has put immense pressure on our neighbourhood with many properties being converted into flats or into Houses of Multiple Occupation (HMO), many of these developments have adversely affected the character of our neighbourhood as they been made unsympathetically and many historic features have been lost. The Conservation Streets committee willingly engages with developers and works with Reading’s Borough Council’s planning department to not only stop this decline, but also tries to ensure that our neighbourhood is enhanced wherever possible. We work closely with both Reading Civic Society and the Conservation Area Advisory Committee who can provide us with specialist advice and assistance as required.
If you would like to help protect and enhance the character of our neighbourhood then please contact us .