Source/Archive record SCH6847 - Land at Elworth Hall Farm, Cheshire: Cultural Heritage Assessment

This document has considered an area of land at Elworth, Cheshire to investigate the potential for proposed development at the land to impact on cultural heritage assets and their settings. The assessment has been undertaken with reasonable skill, care and diligence. It is concluded that whilst there are some discernible but exceedingly minor effects on the settings of cultural heritage assets that would be occasioned by the proposed development, the effects would not represent unacceptable harm to the significance of either designated or non‐designated heritage assets and as such the proposed development does not establish a prohibitive conflict between conservation of cultural heritage value (as expressed in setting) and development at the identified location. The development has the potential to directly affect a range of surface and sub‐surface archaeological remains. These include the site of Elworth Hall and its grounds and the township boundary between Sandbach and Bradwall. The magnitude of change which would be wrought upon these remains has a direct physical impact on the remains and also has an impact on the setting of cultural heritage assets in the vicinity (as noted above). However, the degree to which archaeological remains are actually present, if present at all, is contested, as the proven land fill activities post‐dating the demolition of the hall are very likely to have resulted in large–scale disturbance to sub‐surface archaeological remains. This desk‐based assessment enables an informed, sustainable and responsible approach to the treatment of cultural heritage assets in the area proposed for development on land at Elworth, Cheshire, and will provide Rowland Homes Ltd. and Cheshire East Council with material information for the determination of the planning application. The assessment establishes a potential for medieval and post‐medieval archaeological remains to be preserved within the site. Arguably the medieval remains of occupation at the Elworth Hall site may be the more significant of the two, but are less likely to be present, while the post‐medieval remains will be present in some form, perhaps truncated and disturbed but may be of less significance.