A Walsall couple restoring two listed buildings fear they will be reduced to rubble if concerns go unmet by Walsall Council and property developer Anthem Lovell.
David and Maria Hall own the Toll House Cottage and the Boatman’s Rest which face out onto the Walsall Canal off Old Birchills.
The two Grade II listed buildings are within the historic Walsall Locks Conservation Area.
The Boatman’s Rest was built in 1901 and was funded by the Seamen and Boatmen’s Friendly Society, of which Joel Cadbury was the chair.
The building was used as a mission for the canal users, offering hot drinks, a kitchen, chapel, and letter reading and writing services, since many of the boatmen were illiterate.
In recent history the building was turned into a canal museum before its closure around the millennium.
Next door to the Boatman’s Rest is the Toll House Cottage. Built in the 1800s, it was where the lock keeper lived, maintaining the locks and collecting toll money from the canal users.
David and Maria bought both the buildings in 2009 with a dream of restoring the cottage into their forever home, and hoped to convert the Boatman’s Rest into a space for the community.
But the restoration works have been on hold since a huge £44million 250 plus housing development commenced behind them on the former Caparo steelworks site.
Titled the ‘Lockside Development’, the new housing estate was developed by Anthem Lovell and WHG, with the support of the Walsall Council, West Midlands Combined Authority, and Homes England.
David and Maria had concerns about the outline plans, approved in 2019, because they felt there wasn’t enough detail about the heritage of the area or an environmental impact assessment, due to the potential contaminants from the factory site.
They said the council ‘assured them’ that the additional information would be provided in the reserved matters application, but the pair said ‘there was nothing’ once published.
Since the works began, David and Maria claim their properties have both suffered badly from water damage, contamination, and crumbling brickwork.
Maria said: “Lovell have received a multi-million pound grant to remediate land, however, our properties become valueless due ongoing contamination and water damage. This cannot be right.”
The pair commissioned a water and soil survey from samples taken in their cellar and garden. The results from both soil and water found concentrations of heavy metals including arsenic, lead, and zinc.
In December 2022, the Victorian brick wall surrounding the cottage’s garden gave way and collapsed, leaving the cottage exposed to burglaries and vandalism.
David and Maria applied to install a wooden fence to protect the property, but were refused permission by the council as it would appear ‘alien and harmfully at odds’ with the building.
The pair took the council’s refusal to the planning inspector, who overruled the decision and allowed the fence to go ahead, but only for 12 months in the interests of security.
Following their fight the couple could not believe it when they returned home one day earlier this year to find a large, closed board fence between their properties and the new development, which again, they understood was installed without planning permission.
Now, a new listed building consent application has been submitted by Lovell, hoping to demolish what’s left of the factory walls and for retrospective consent for minor works.
Part of the former factory building to be demolished is attached to the Boatman’s Rest. A structural survey in a previous, similar, application details a large crack in the corner of the building next to the old factory.
In the latest application, Lovell said that the operations would ‘carry huge risk to the listed buildings’ and that the ‘processes require extremely large, heavy machinery that would cause unnecessary disruption to the made ground, which could lead to an increased risk of damage to the listed buildings’.
David and Maria have objected to the plans and launched a petition to encourage others to do the same. The petition has garnered over 700 signatures since it was launched in August. https://www.change.org/p/reject-application-25-0700-protect-walsall-locks-heritage
The pair said they did not oppose some work being carried out and agree that some of the buildings need to be demolished. But they have argued that it must be done in a way to stop the ‘ongoing damage’ to their listed properties.
Maria said: “We’d be very happy if proposals were put forward which address those issues and prevent the ongoing harm. We want the wall to go, but we want the earth behind to be dug out to leave a cavity to prevent the ongoing migration of water between the two sites.
“What we really want is for us, Lovell and the council to sit down together, because the three parties never get in a room together and nothing gets sorted. They haven’t spoken to us about this latest listed building consent. The canal users are supporting us, and there is anger out there.”
The pair have spent their life savings trying to protect the two buildings, estimating at least £50,000, which included a court injunction against the developer in 2023 over a demolition row.
David said: “The planning authority won’t enforce or prosecute heritage crimes, and the cost of a civil lawsuit would be £70,000 in court costs alone, making it unaffordable for the majority of people.
“As owners of listed buildings, we have a duty to protect them and report any harm to the council, otherwise the council can take them off us. But they’re not listening to us and colluding with the developers behind closed doors.”
A spokesperson from Anthem Lovell, said: “We are aware of concerns raised in relation to a recent listed building consent application concerning our Lockside development.
“We have and will continue to liaise with the nearby property owners to address their concerns and reach a conclusion for all parties that protects the listed buildings in question.”
Walsall Council has not provided comment.
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