The SAVE BaR Register

What is the Building at Risk register for?

The purpose of the SAVE register is to unite people looking for a historic building to repair with buildings in need of repair. For this reason we compile and monitor Buildings at Risk that are vacant based on information we receive from local planners and other sources.

SAVE primarily includes Grade II listed buildings throughout England, and all grades of listed buildings in Wales on the register. It thus complements in England English Heritage's Buildings at Risk register which focuses on Grade I and Grade II* only. In England, about 416,000 buildings, that is 94 per cent of the total sample of listed buildings, are Grade II listed.

In doing so, the SAVE register aims to raise awareness about the problems faced by this particular category of listed buildings. Grade II listed buildings make up the vast majority of our listed building heritage but only very limited funding is available. In Wales, SAVE's register operates so far as the only existing countrywide Buildings at Risk register for buildings of all grades of listing.

How to use the register?

The Buildings at Risk register aims to help potential restorers to find a building that needs and merits preservation in any area of England and Wales. Each entry on our database contains a brief description of the building, the reasons for it being at risk and its recent planning history. Please note that being vacant does not necessarily mean that the building is on the market. Where a building is For Sale or likely to come up on the market in the near future it is indicated. Each entry contains the relevant planning contact but SAVE does not identify and name the owners, and we have to leave it to each individual to do any necessary further research and follow-up contacts.

The fact that one district has a substantial number of entries does not mean that this District or County is shamefully full of decaying buildings. Rather it indicates the presence of conservation officer keen to help find new owners and new uses and see the buildings on their patch repaired. Where there are a few buildings it may be because the Local Authority has not yet begun to tackle the task. The South East Region of England presents a remarkable exception. Generally speaking, there is no lack of ready cash to 'help' historic buildings and they are more commonly at risk from their owner's intentions, rather than neglect.

Acquiring a Building at Risk

Buying your dream house - the old thatched cottage at the end of the lane in unadulterated countryside -- is never as easy as it may seem and can be a long and painstaking process. In so many cases it is not the building that is problematic but the owner and anyone embarking upon the rescue of a dilapidated house must be aware of this. To persuade the owners to offer the buildings for sale at reasonable terms and at a reasonable price is almost the single largest problem. Reasonable terms means a long lease (99 or preferably 125 years) or freehold, which will make the investment in restoration financially worthwhile. It means offering adequate amount of land, that is the gardens or grounds, and proper, secure, longterm means of access. A reasonable price is the price that reflects the condition of the building and the cost of restoration, not the potential value of a planning permission to build in the grounds.

For some Buildings at Risk the situation can suddenly change once the local authority decides to use their Statutory Powers. Look out where the local authority is considering serving a Repairs Notice or a Compulsory Purchase Order as these proceedings might eventually bring a property on the market. In SAVE's experience the simple announcement that a district council has resolved to serve a Repairs Notice is enough to persuade an owner either to carry out emergency repairs or to sell the building.

Where the local authority is undertaking a compulsory purchase it is more than likely that they would want to hear from interested parties to take the building on from them in a back-to-back agreement. Expressing your interest can actively encourage local authorities to use these powers! Some keep a list of contacts who have pledged their interest in taking on the building from the council. The fear has always been that the local authority may be lumbered with the cost of repair. For more information on the role of local authorities and statutory powers to protect listed buildings, click here.

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