Listed Buildings
What is a Listed Building?
A listed building is a building or structure recognised by central government as being of special architectural or historic interest and worthy of special protection. A listed building is included on the National Heritage List for England (NHLE) which is compiled by the Secretary for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport with advice from Historic England.
Listing is not restricted to buildings and the protection can cover bridges, walls, even gravestones. Generally, the older a building is the more likely that it will be listed.
All listed buildings are of national importance but they are divided into three categories, known as grades:
- Grade I: Buildings of exceptional interest
- Grade II*: Buildings of more than special interest
- Grade II: Buildings of special interest. These form the majority of listed buildings in the district
There are almost 2000 entries on the NHLE in the Dover District. You can check if your building is listed using either the NHLE or our online map using the link at the top of the page which shows the location of all the listed buildings within the district based on a postcode or street name search.
What does listing cover?
All list entries include a 'list description' of the building; however, this is only intended to aid identification and in some instances can be very short and may only mention the front of the building. In fact, the listed status of a building includes all of the building, both internal and external; front, rear and side elevations, cellars, rooms, attic, roof and chimney! The absence of any feature of the building from the list description does not indicate that it is of no architectural or historic interest or that it may be removed or altered without consent.
Also protected is any object or structure fixed to the listed building and any structure built before 1948 which is within the area around the listed building, known as the curtilage. Curtilage is not defined by boundaries and can include outbuildings, garden walls and other boundary structures, gates and in some cases even brick paths and terraces and statuary.
We can advise you whether or not your outbuilding or structure is likely to be considered curtilage listed.
What is Listed Building consent?
Listed Building Consent is a free of charge application made to the Council, and is necessary for any works (both external and internal) which:
- Would affect the special interest of the listed building
- Would affect the appearance of the listed building
It is a criminal offence to carry out works to a listed building without first obtaining consent when it is required, even if you did not know it was listed. Unauthorised works can lead to prosecution of the owner and the person carrying out the works. It is therefore important that you ensure that you seek relevant advice on the need for consent prior to carrying out any works.
More on listed building consent »
Contact us
Tel: 01304 872486
Email: conservation@dover.gov.uk