Southwell CA Appraisal.pdf - Newark and Sherwood District Council

TOWN CENTRE
Church Street, Halam Road, King Street, Kirklington Road, Market Place, The Ropewalk,
Queen Street, Sheppards Row
Layout
This area forms the commercial centre of the town and is characterised by a tightly knit urban
form. Buildings are densely packed on narrow plots because the extensive use of land for
church properties left little space for secular town centre buildings. These narrow plots are
evident today, particularly on the north side of King
King Street
Street where Bull Yard, Waterloo Yard and Portland
Arcade are typical. They are characterised by the
principal building facing the street, with smaller
buildings built behind at right angles. The principal
building has an archway to allow access to the ones at
the rear. The yards are not evident on the south side of
King Street as the space here was even more
constrained by the Prebendal plots opposite the Minster
Church.
The town suffered transport problems, which are typical of a compact and busy commercial
historic core. Its central streets were narrow and frequently congested with a series of pinch
points that caused conflict between vehicles and pedestrians.
The recently implemented scheme in the town centre included a one way system for King
Street and Queen Street with loading, disabled and limited waiting bays to try and strike a
balance between the needs of all road users, and to make for a more attractive and safer
environment for pedestrians within the limited available space.
Southwell never developed a thriving market and the area that is assumed to have been the
market place on the south side of King Street was built upon, possibly in the Middle Ages. The
road called Market Place surrounding the crossroads is not thought to be the original site
although a small market was here in the late C18 th and early C19 th . The current market is held
on a gap site in the King Street frontage.
Queen Street leads from the town centre and is
transitional in character. Commercial property stops quite
abruptly at the end of Bull Yard, which is dense in
layout, thereafter the road is residential with buildings
widely dispersed. In this area large houses with large
gardens, such as at 32 Queen Street, The Hollies and St
Mary’s House, are prominent. The large gardens with
trees, the houses and the boundary walls are all important
to the conservation area character.
Summary
King Street,
Market Place
• In any future development proposals a high density form of development is appropriate for
the commercial centre.
• The distinct change in character along Queen Street should be maintained.
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