Historic Works and Buildings

The Historic Works & Buildings Group (HWBG) responds appropriately to planning applications for alterations or repairs to listed buildings and other constructions, and keeps a watching brief on any that are neglected and under threat. Conversions or alterations to traditional farm buildings are studied particularly carefully.

The HWBG is concerned with the protection and conservation of any of the components of the historic environment that are important to the character and appearance of The Chilterns as a distinct region.

The historic environment includes
• All kinds of buildings, structures and archaeological remains
• The historic cores of the Chiltern villages and towns
• Historic landscapes that were created by design or have evolved as a by-product of everyday life

The Group's policy documents
• Ancient Monuments & Areas of Archaeological Importance
• Listed Buildings and other Historic Buildings
• Conservation Areas
• Historic Parks & Gardens
• Historic Farm Buildings & Farmsteads

Group meetings
Indoor meetings often include invited speakers. Some will be professionals who share their experiences of working with historic buildings, while others will be dedicated amateurs who wish to share their knowledge with others interested in their chosen subjects. The normal location for indoor meetings is:

The Rosetti Hall
New Pond Road
Holmer Green
(OS map 165, map ref SU903972, or
Click here for Streetmap's online map. NB. Following this link will open an additional browser window, which you should close in order to return here).

Two of the HWBG meetings in the summer are usually held outdoors and the opportunity is taken to visit some of the finest buildings or Conservation Areas in the Chilterns under the guidance of an expert. The programme is published in Chiltern News. More information is available from the HWBG Secretary (Navigate to: 'Contact us' > 'Directory').

The most vital work of the HWBG often takes place unseen. It takes the form of investigations into threats to listed buildings or the character of conservation areas by insensitive development. A network of Conservation Watch Volunteers is in place to monitor their local areas.

They, or anyone else in the Society report potential threats. Members of the HWBG will investigate and report to members of the HWBG committee who decide whether action is needed. Action will often be in the form of writing to relevant authorities to point out where legislation seems to be failing and protection for buildings or other historic features is not being enforced.

The HWBG achieves conservation through vigilance, advice, research and where the opportunity and resources allow, the active restoration or management of historic buildings, monuments or other parts of the historic landscape.

Some splendid examples of this are the restoration of Lacey Green Windmill and the formation of the Chiltern Open Air Museum. Both these projects were instigated by the HWBG some years ago, and in more recent times the HWBG has been actively preserving the chalk cross at Bledlow, which is possibly a rather less well known brother to the more familiar Whiteleaf Cross.