This area is a rural fringe of Bath outside the city boundary.
It has been included in this city wide character appraisal because
it is an area which contributes significantly to the setting and
character of the city.
This area forms part of Area 16 of the ‘Rural Landscapes of Bath
and North East Somerset: A Landscape Character Assessment’
(2003).
Physical Influences
Geology
8.1.1 The plateau is formed from Greater Oolitic
Limestone, which has layers of Lias Clay and Fuller’s Earth below
them. The soils over the limestone are thin brashy fine loams which
are free draining and support calcareous grassland of the Bath
area. These loams change to deeper slowly permeable clay soils on
the lower valley sides.
Landform and Drainage Pattern
8.1.2 The landscape that wraps around northern Bath
comprises three distinct elements: the Cotswold scarp face, the
steep narrow valleys that cut into the scarp face and the high
plateau.
8.1.3 The smaller valleys of Lock’s Brook, Lam Brook
and minor valley of Whitewell Brook cut into the scarp slope
forming valleys with a north west to south east orientation.
The sources of the brooks are Henstridge Hill in Kelston and
Lansdown, Cold Ashton and Charlcombe respectively. The steep slopes
of the Lock’s and Lam Brooks rise to the fairly flat Lansdown
plateau.
8.1.4 In the west of the area the land rises 165m
from the Kelston Road (A431) to the edge of the plateau.
Land Use and Buildings
Land Use
8.1.5 The land is mostly in agricultural use.
However, the flat nature of the plateau lends itself to use as
sports pitches and the racecourse. Other uses include the
Lansdown Park and Ride, Beckford’s Tower with Lansdown Cemetery and
a water tower and telecommunications masts.
8.1.6 There are larger areas of settlements at
Bailbrook, Charlcombe, Swainswick and Ensleigh. Other than this,
built development is quite sparse and confined to isolated farm
houses and dwellings.
8.1.7 The fields on the plateau are angular and of
medium to large size, although on the slopes they tend to be
smaller and more regular in shape. There are a small number of
woodlands on the steeper slopes.
Building Form and Heights
8.1.8 Buildings in the area are most commonly
detached houses, either in the villages or on the isolated
farms. Some are on the plateau but most are along the spring
lines lower down the valley. Dwellings are predominantly two
storeys high but a few grander ones are three and many have
habitable attics as well. The Defence Logistics Organisation (DLO)
site at Ensleigh is an exception being a modern functional complex.
It is linear in character, being only a single storey and certainly
does not sit well with the more traditional ones around.
Building Age
8.1.9 Most of the traditional buildings date from
the late C18 and C19s. Many have had more modern extensions and
there are a few examples from more recent periods. The Ensleigh
complex was originally built in the mid C20 but some development
has continued to date. Buildings associated with the recreational
facilities are later C20.
Materials and Architectural Details
8.1.10 Most of the buildings are in the familiar Cotswold
vernacular, with the soft Oolitic Limestone used for walls and
often mullion windows with the typical drip lines. Originally many
roofs would also have been tiled in stone but most are now slate,
clay or concrete. The modern buildings of Ensleigh are concrete and
glass, they have flat roofs to match their low profile.
8.1.11 The smaller buildings around the car parks and sports
pitches use a variety of materials, generally they are fairly
unobtrusive but none of them is of any quality or merit.
Street Pattern
8.1.12 With the exception of the A46, the other roads in this
rural area are historic routes. They run either directly up
the slopes, follow the contours of the minor valleys or take a very
straight course across the plateau. The valley side roads are
frequently sunken lanes but on the plateau wide grass verges edge
Lansdown Road on both sides.
8.1.13 A network of public rights of way links the residential
areas with the surrounding rural area, and also links this area to
a broader rural network of paths. The Cotswold Way is a
National Trail which starts at the Abbey, emerges from urban
development at Upper Weston and skirts the Lansdown plateau via
Kelston Round Hill before heading north through the Cotswolds
Hills.
Density and Degree of Enclosure
8.1.14 Development is very sparse through the whole area,
comprising scattered farmhouses and tiny clusters of dwellings. The
plateau is very open and exposed. However, lines of trees and
tall, unmanaged hedges sometimes contain views to within the
plateau. The slopes are open and exposed but the smaller valleys
often feel more enclosed and quite isolated.
Vitality and Tranquillity
8.1.15 The area is quite tranquil in many parts and skylarks can
be heard. There are some exceptions. The fast moving traffic on
Lansdown Road detracts greatly as does the traffic noise from the
A46 as it carries across from the Lam Brook valley. The A46
cutting and junction is still raw and highly engineered and
contrasts unpleasantly with the gentle harmony found elsewhere in
the area.
Boundary Treatments
8.1.16 Hedges and hedge banks of sunken lanes are the most
common boundary treatments on the slopes. Some hedges are managed
but many are not and this gives the landscape a soft
appearance. The plateau has many stone walls characteristic
of the Cotswold landscape. Many are in disrepair, giving the
plateau a rather neglected feel. Belts of trees, sometimes
exotic conifers, line many of these walls. The few hedges on the
plateau tend to be unmanaged and their fullness influences the
otherwise austere character there.
Influence of Vegetation and Open Space
8.1.17 The whole area is dominated by agriculture. The many
types of grasslands are the dominant feature of this landscape. The
steep valley slopes are usually permanent pasture or, where they
are steeper still, woodland. These pastures are green all year and
many support rich summer blooms of wild flowers such as campions
and orchids. This richness is enhanced and softened where the
hedges have been left to grow tall and wild.
8.1.18 On the flat plateau the thinner well-drained soils
encourage arable farming. The plateau has greater seasonal change
as fields change in colour from green to yellow and then to brown
as crops are grown, harvested and finally ploughed. Here the low
walls give little cover in winter and the area is windswept and
exposed.
8.1.19 The distinctive hanging woods of the scarp face are most
often beech. Many other species are found in the other less exposed
woods and these include exotic conifer species that do not always
improve the appearance of the area.
8.1.20 The flat landform of the plateau has been used for many
sports pitches. The management of sports pitches includes the
use of fertiliser, weed killer and close mowing, and this regime
destroys the integrity of the calcareous grassland. The
calcareous grassland character is maintained around the pitches
which benefits wildlife from bumblebees to skylarks.
Features, Landmarks and Views
8.1.21 Beckford’s Tower, sited close to the southern edge of the
Lansdown plateau, can be seen for miles, particularly from the
south, and more so since the cast iron roof received a gilded
finish!
8.1.22 Screened by trees the adjacent water tower, whilst a
distinctive feature, is only visible locally.
8.1.23 Dean Hill is a local landmark at Weston. Little Solsbury
Hill, a Bronze Age hill fort and Scheduled Ancient Monument
dominates the skyline in the east of the area.
8.1.24 The well managed landscape of the scarp slope of this
area makes an impressive rural backdrop to development on the north
side of Bath. The hills and rural ridge line are prominent in
many views from within the river valley, urban and rural
viewpoints, and from the opposite valley sides to the south.
To the west of the area, Kelston Park sits in an elevated position
overlooking the Avon valley.
8.1.25 The lights of development on the Lansdown plateau, for
example the Lansdown Park and Ride site and associated highway
lighting, and the DLO site, are very intrusive at night where they
can be seen from the north.
8.1.26 The A46 cutting, in the foreground of Little Solsbury
Hill, is a feature that scars the hillside and is widely visible
from the south.
Cultural Influences
Historic Uses
8.1.27 The land has always been in agricultural use and this
included a number of orchards that are no longer present.
