Listed Buildings - Cat flaps?

[Adams1104]

Hi,

We've just started letting our cats out into our garden after spending the last few months soley indoors. I was wondering if anyone knew the legal side of whether it was okay for us to make a hole in the original door (the front door the building originally came with), so as to insert a cat flap.

If that's impossible, would it be legal to take the door off it's hinges and replace it with a newer door (with cat flap), keeping the old door in the shed until the day we move or whatever?

[smurfchops]

Telephone your local council, planning department, and ask them.

[ACB312]

Hi, I live in a listed building in Scotland. I have made various changes, ranging from erecting a garage at the back of the building (out of site of the general public) and that required permission from the Secretary of State for Scotland to replacing windows - no problem as long as they maintained the same proportions as the originals. I'm list B which is of local interest only and quite frankly, nobody from any form of authority has shown the least bit of interest (apart from the garage bit) in anything I've done. So I would go ahead with your idea of replacing your door and keeping the original one in case some anorak notices it and makes some form of objection and you can revert. I don't know where you are and what grading of listing so I am generalising a bit. Does the cat flap need to be in the front door? I have two cats that like to come in and out of a rear facing window and I'm considering some form of ingress/egress through two feet of sandstone invisible to the public and I'm not going to let anybody know. Anyway I'll make it so that it can be reverted to look like the original. Your cat(s) would hopefully adapt to an alternative outdoor route fairly quickly. Hope this is of some interest and help.

[Buenchico]

The law states " . . .no person shall execute or cause to be executed any works for the demolition of a listed building or for its alteration or extension in any manner which would affect its character as a building of special architectural or historic interest, unless the works are authorised."
(Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990, Chapeter II, Para 7).

If you were planning to make a hole in a back door, out of sight of everyone else, then it might be argued that your proposal wouldn't alter the property's 'character as a building of special architectural or historic interest'. (Deciding whether it did or not could probably keep dozens of lawyers busy for week).

Unfortunately, it seems that your plans relate to a door where any alterations will affect the building's character. In which case, you would need to obtain permission before, for example, repainting the door a different colour. Putting a cat flap in (or putting in a temporary door complete with cat flap), without permission, would almost certainly be a breach of the Act and therefore a criminal offence.

I suggest having an informal word with the staff at the Planning Department of your local council before proceeding further. It's likely that they'll have some previous experience of dealing with cat flaps (either authorising them or demanding that they're removed) so they'll be able to give you some guidance.

Chris

[Adams1104]

Hey,

Thanks for the input/answers.

We have done some research into the legalities of replacing the door and i've looked long and hard at them, both front and back. For neither does it look to me that they are the originals, and that they have been replaced over the last 30-60 years (doors are hard to tell age if conditioning and restoration are maintained well). Is it the case that if the door has been replaced by a different home owner since the building was declared listed, that any adjustments / alterations to that door would be acceptable aslong as we kept our noses clean? Meaning, even though the previous owners have put door bells and the such on it, we could infact 'kick' a cat flap through and claim it to be the doings of the former residents??

Thanks again for the help. Cheers