Fencing in the Ironbridge Gorge, Telford: The Rules

What the designations are

Telford & Wrekin Council says the Ironbridge Gorge World Heritage Site was inscribed in 1986, as one of the first in the UK. It adds that the status itself gives no extra legal protection or planning rules, though the council has specific policies and guidance in recognition of the Gorge. The majority of the site is also a conservation area. Source: Telford & Wrekin Council, Ironbridge Gorge World Heritage Site.

The council’s conservation area page lists eight areas in the borough: Edgmond, High Ercall, Horsehay and Spring Village, Kynnersley, Newport, The Severn Gorge, Wellington and Wrockwardine. The Severn Gorge area was designated in 1971 and extended in 1980 and again in January 2024. No area on that list carries the name Madeley, so do not assume a street there is covered or uncovered: the council has a GIS map for checking. Source: Telford & Wrekin Council, Conservation areas.

The Article 4 direction and fences

Within the World Heritage Site the council has made an Article 4(2) direction, in place since 1998, which removes some permitted development rights for dwelling houses. The council says this does not mean applications will be refused, only that permission is needed. In its list of what is withdrawn, where the development fronts a highway, waterway or open space, are these:

• the erection, construction, improvement, alteration or replacement of a gate, fence, wall or other means of enclosure of a dwelling
• the demolition or removal of the whole or part of any gate, fence, wall or other means of enclosure of a dwelling

The direction was amended and confirmed on 28 December 2012. Source: Telford & Wrekin Council, Article 4 Direction.

So a new front fence, or any boundary facing a road, a river or open space, is a matter for the council before anything is ordered. Whether a side or rear boundary falls inside the wording is a question the council can answer for your address.

Taking a fence down

The council’s conservation areas page adds a rule on demolition. Planning permission is required to demolish a wall, gate or fence of more than 1 metre adjacent to a highway, or 2 metres elsewhere, so removing an old boundary can need consent as well as building a new one. Source: Telford & Wrekin Council, Conservation areas.

Help that is free

For households living inside the World Heritage Site, the council runs free 30-minute planning surgeries, held at Madeley Community Library and at the Gorge Parish Council unit at Maws Craft Centre in Jackfield. Dates and booking are on its page. It has also produced a residents’ guide for people planning changes to a house and the land around it. Source: Telford & Wrekin Council, Ironbridge Gorge World Heritage Site.

And the ground

The Gorge is also the part of Telford where the council monitors landslips, describing them as rare. Its list of things to look out for is simple: cracks in paths or pavements, distorted surfaces, leaning walls, garden movement and severely leaning trees. Source: Telford & Wrekin Council, Land Instability in Ironbridge Gorge. The old mine ground page covers the wider picture.

Whether a street lies inside the designated area is shown on the council’s GIS map. This page is general information, not a planning decision.