Site Event/Activity record ECH6563 - Lower Yew Tree Farm, Over Alderley: Heritage Appraisal

A heritage assessment was produced in 2017 for the unlisted property Lower Yew Tree Farm in advance of proposals to demolish the house and associated barn. The house is dated 1791 and both buildings appear on maps from 1819. The house is considered to be significant for the evidential value of its date of construction, internal historic timbers, some of which have been re-used and date from an earlier building although there is no evidence for an earlier house on this site, and the staircase. The barn is considered to be significant for two external gantries and two purlins in the outshut. The house and barn are considered to be of low significance overall, are not of listable quality and should be considered as non-designated assets in planning terms, although the house is of more interest than the barn. The principal interest in the house lies in the date stone (sited above the porch and inscribed ‘H TS 1791’) and in the historic timbers, although some have been re-used and appear to relate to a house elsewhere. The re-use of these features in any new construction would act as mitigation for the loss of the building. It is also recommended that as many of the existing building materials as possible are re-used in any new construction. This could also help new construction to reflect the local character. (1)