English Heritage
English Heritage exists to protect and promote England’s spectacular historic environment and ensure that its past is researched and understood.
One of it’s functions is to promote and protect historic buildings. It does this by “listing” in a statutory List of Buildings of Special Architectural and Historic Interest. There are 3 categories and 92% of all listed buildings are Grade II.
Four buildings within Hackfall are grade II or grade II* listed and one on the edge of the wood is also a grade II listed building.
1. Mowbray Point [also known as the Banqueting House] – grade II*
2. Mowbray Castle – grade II
3. Fisher’s Hall – grade II
4. Rustic Temple – grade II
5. Hackfall Farmhouse – grade II
Listing is not a preservation order, preventing change. Listing is an identification stage where buildings are marked and celebrated as having exceptional architectural or historic special interest, before any planning stage which may decide a building’s future.Listing does not freeze a building in time, it simply means that listed building consent must be applied for in order to make any changes to that building which might affect its special interest. Listed buildings can be altered, extended and sometimes even demolished within government planning guidance. The local authority uses listed building consent to make decisions that balance the site’s historic significance against other issues such as its function, condition or viability.
Hackfall itself is a Grade I registered garden in the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens.