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Boughton Village Design Statement

Supplementary planning guidance, produced by the villagers of Boughton, Northamptonshire and adopted in March, 2003.

Copies of the original document can be be purchased from Daventry District Council Planning Department, Tel. 01327 302587.

Highways & street furniture

Centuries-old sand/ironstone cottages and the K6 telephone box in Church Street.

Centuries-old sand/ironstone cottages (and the K6 telephone box) in Church Street...

For a number of years local residents have vigorously expressed great concern over the volume and speed of traffic through Boughton. The village has been notoriously used as a 'rat-run' by motorists cutting through to Moulton Park or Northampton.

The roads in Boughton have a 7.5 ton weight restriction. Despite this there has been continual abuse by vehicles over the weight restriction.

Humprey Lane

...and Humprey Lane

Planning permission was refused for 1,000 new houses at Buckton Fields. But if this development is revived in the future, it raises further concerns about traffic volumes. Traffic calming measures will be essential if this development goes ahead.

Street lighting is placed throughout the village and subject to consultation with residents, new street lights are considered. A street lighting warden is appointed by the Parish Council to oversee this task.

Benches in wooden and cast-iron design are provided by the Parish Council and individual private donors. There are strategically placed bench seats within the Pocket Park, along Vyse Road, Howard Lane and Harborough Road North.

Merewater in Church Street: Thatch and Northamptonshire sand/ironstone

Merewater in Church Street: thatch and Northamptonshire sand/ironstone

One of the street signs is a traditional fingerpost at the junction of Church Street and Humfrey Lane.

Metal railings enclose Nursery Spinney, stretches of Vyse Road and by the side of the school in Moulton Lane.

A K6 style telephone kiosk is situated in Church Street, and the Post Box is sited in Humfrey Lane outside the sub-Post Office.

Highway & Street Furniture Guidelines

  • Traffic-calming measures must be in keeping with and compliment the rural character of the village. They must not interfere with the streets' visual qualities.
  • Excessive signage is inappropriate and not in keeping with Boughton's character.
  • Humps and rumble strips create noise pollution, are visually intrusive and are not suitable in any traffic-calming scheme.
  • Concrete kerbing has been installed in the village, replacing the old granite setts. These modern concrete setts are visually intrusive, and not in keeping with the village character.
  • Any new kerbing schemes should encourage the use of appropriate materials using granite setts wherever possible.
  • Minimal levels of street lighting are appropriate. Downlighting is preferred if extra street lighting is adopted, using white light rather than orange.
  • In 1976, much of the overhead telephone wiring in the Conservation Area was placed underground and the telegraph poles removed. This has much improved visual quality and any future schemes in other areas of the village will be very much welcomed. Utility providers are encouraged to conceal all installations underground in the future.
  • Developers should build to standards appropriate to the rural location. For example they may refer to “Rural England” (October 1995) and Design Bulletin 32 (DOT/DOE 92) and its companion guide, Places, Streets and Movement (DETR 1998), which encourage this.
  • Where grass verges remain, such as Butchers Lane, Spring Close, Humfrey Lane and the roads leading into Boughton, they should be retained and managed appropriately.
  • Older houses directly on the street, currently have tarmac pavements abutting the house walls. Rain 'splash-back' from the hard paving can enter old fabric and cause damp problems. Thin gravel strips (French drains) between houses and pavements may alleviate this problem. The fall of the pavement should run towards the road and away from house walls.
  • Street Furniture should be of good quality, preferably of wood and wrought iron, appropriate to its Boughton context.
  • Villagers are encouraged to carefully site private security lights without forming a hazard to road users or annoyance to neighbours.
  • The K6 Telephone Box and the finger post at the junction of Moulton Lane and Church Street should be retained.
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