Working Group

A range of issues that have been considered by the Working Group recently, are summarised below.

We supported the successful application for Hindhead Court, the Royal School, Portsmouth Road, Hindhead to be added to the List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest. This is an important early 20th century building that provides an almost intact example of a house of the Arts and Craft Movement which was prevalent in southwest Surrey during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The building was in immediate danger of inappropriate alterations that would have destroyed its character and significance.

The Group also led the Trust to object to the planning application to demolish the Grasshopper Inn, Westerham Road, Westerham. The Grasshopper Inn is a fine example of a roadside inn from the post-war period, and it is historically and architecturally significant. It is on Tandridge District Council’s Buildings of Character List (2013) and a non-designated heritage asset.

The Group has an ongoing, keen interest in conserving building materials and techniques that are traditional to Surrey. A fine example is the use of local Ironstone paving which is often under threat. It is traditional in Surrey and is found in a number of villages and towns across the county; it is now difficult to acquire the correct stone when the paving falls into disrepair. The Trust is working to produce a leaflet that will set out how to maintain and repair ironstone paving.