The Historic Environment
- Search for Applications
- Making a Planning Application
- Heritage and Conservation
- Planning Policy
- Neighbourhood Planning
- Designated Neighbourhood Areas
- Abberley Neighbourhood Plan
- Broadwas and Cotheridge Neighbourhood Plan
- Malvern Town Neighbourhood Plan
- Hanley Castle Parish Neighbourhood Plan
- Clifton upon Teme Neighbourhood Plan
- Kempsey Neighbourhood Plan
- Martley, Knightwick and Doddenham Neighbourhood Plan
- Hallow Neighbourhood Plan
- Leigh & Bransford Neighbourhood Plan
- Welland Neighbourhood Plan
- Great Witley and Hillhampton Neighbourhood Plan
- Planning Policy Monitoring
- Brownfield Land Register
- Self-Build and Custom Housebuilding Register
- SWDPR Review
- Neighbourhood Planning
- Other Planning Services
- Community Infrastructure Levy
- Planning Obligations (Section 106)
- Street Naming and Numbering
- Local Land Charges
- Planning Appeals
- Planning Committee and Meetings
- Planning Conditions and Fees
- Footpath Diversions (S257)
- Supplementary Planning Documents (SPD)
- Local Development Scheme (LDS)
- Planning Weekly List
- Planning History Search
- Planning Enforcement
- South Worcestershire Building Control
Malvern Hills has 1,890 listed buildings, 21 conservation areas and 54 scheduled monuments. There are 6 nationally registered parks and gardens.
Please use the drop-down list below to find the information you need:
Listed Buildings
A listed building is a structure of special architectural or historic interest. Both the interior and exterior are protected, along with anything attached to the building. Listings are designated by the Government with advice from Historic England, who maintain the national list. Buildings are categorised as Grade I, Grade II* or Grade II.
Search for a listed building on the Historic England website
List descriptions help identify buildings but are not a full record of all features of significance. The legal framework for listed buildings is set out in the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990.
Curtilage
Some structures are protected as part of a listed building’s curtilage. These may include outbuildings or boundary features. They will not show up on the national list or on My Local Area website searches as they are protected by association with the main listed building rather than being listed in their own right. The Local Planning Authority can confirm curtilage status on enquiry. There is no fee for queries relating to the need to confirm curtilage listed status.
Heritage and Listed Building Advice Services
We provide two types of advice for people who are caring for, altering or developing historic buildings:
- Free verbal advice
- Formal written advice (subject to a fee)
Both services help applicants understand their responsibilities before undertaking any work.
Heritage and Listed Building Free Advice Service
Our free advice service offers initial, informal, expert guidance to anyone involved in the care or alteration of a historic building. It is intended for early‑stage queries only.
What this service covers
- High-level guidance on conservation principles, maintenance and repairs
- General advice relating to alterations or extensions in principle (not property-specific)
- Principles about sustainable or energy‑saving measures
- Clarification on whether listed building consent is required, how to apply, and whether associated planning permission may also be required
- Signposting to relevant resources or services, including where to go to seek professional advice from qualified advisors or builders
How to book
Appointments can be booked online using our booking system or by calling 01386 565000. Meetings are held via Microsoft Teams or by telephone. Appointments must be booked in advance and are limited to the times available.
If no suitable appointments are currently available, you will need to check back and book later or seek advice using our Heritage and Listed Building Formal Written Advice Service described below.
What you will receive once you've booked
You will receive emails confirming the appointment, including links you can use to join the meeting on MS Teams, to add the appointment to your electronic diary, and to reschedule or cancel your booking. If you need to cancel or reschedule and cannot find this email, contact us at 01386 565000 we can help you.
At the meeting you will receive a free 15-minute online advice session as follows:
• Format: Verbal advice only via Microsoft Teams or a telephone meeting
• Duration: Strictly limited to 15 minutes
• Frequency: Limited to one session per customer per calendar year
What this service does not cover
This service does not provide:
- Advice exceeding 15 minutes
- Written responses or formal documentation
- Site visits
- Detailed technical assessment of plans or drawings for a specific building or structure
- Ongoing or iterative design review
If you need any of the above, you will need to use the formal written advice service.
All consultations are confidential and comply with relevant data protection regulations. Please see our privacy notice for more information at Privacy Notice.
Heritage and Listed Building Formal Written Advice Service
This service provides more detailed, formal advice where a greater level of assessment is required.
PLEASE NOTE that the Heritage Team must prioritise its statutory responsibilities, including the processing of planning and listed building consent applications within nationally set deadlines.
Pre‑application advice is a discretionary service with no statutory timescales, and will therefore only be provided when capacity allows. As a result, we are unable to commit to a specific response timeframe for pre‑application enquiries.
If you require advice by a particular deadline, you should seek support from suitably qualified independent professionals, such as those listed on the Institute of Historic Building Conservation registers: Institute of Historic Building Conservation registers
Use this service if you need:
- A written response, report or other formal documentation
- A site visit
- An in‑depth or technical review of proposals and plans relating to a specific building or structure
- If you need confirmation that a building is curtilage listed or is a Non-designated Heritage Asset.
How to request formal written advice
Submit a request through our Pre-application advice page.
When completing the form, select ‘Works to a listed building’ from the development type dropdown list.
This service is subject to a fee. Further details are available on our Pre-application advice page.
Additional professional input
While we can advise on repairs and maintenance, we recommend seeking support from appropriately qualified professionals such as conservation‑accredited structural engineers, surveyors or architects where specialist expertise is needed.
Before carrying out any work
You are advised to seek advice — either through the free verbal service, the formal written service, or an independent heritage advisor — before undertaking any work to a listed building.
Conservation Areas
Section 69 of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 provides for Malvern Hills District Council to designate "areas of special architectural or historic interest, the character or appearance of which it is desirable to preserve or enhance" as Conservation Areas.
The effect of designation is to give the council powers to control the demolition of non-listed buildings, and the felling, lopping or topping of trees must be the subject of prior notification. There is no right of appeal against designation.
These regulations aim to protect the character of the area, but successful conservation is a positive mixture of preservation, conversion and sympathetic new development and so all local authorities must from time to time review their designated conservation areas, to make sure that their controls are still effective.
There are 21 Conservation Areas within the Malvern Hills district.
- Abberley
- Bayton
- Bushley
- Castlemorton
- Clifton upon Teme
- Hallow
- Hanley Castle
- Kempsey
- Leigh
- Madresfield
- Great Malvern
- Malvern Link
- Malvern Trinity
- Malvern Wells
- Martley
- Newland
- Powick
- Ripple
- Tenbury Wells
- Uckinghall
- Upton Upon Severn
The conservation section has embarked upon a programme of conservation area appraisals and management strategies including a review of the boundaries.
Every local authority is obliged to undertake this work under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990.
Find out more about conservation area appraisals.
Useful resources
- Building Conservation Directory
- Historic England
- Institute of Historic Building Conservation
- The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG)
Please note that these website addresses are given for information purposes only, and do not imply any endorsement of the website supplier or the content of these external sites, and the council carries no responsibility for the accuracy of any information on the websites concerned.
Historic Parks and Gardens
Historic Parks and Gardens has been established as a designation since 1983, nationally listed by Historic England through the government and locally registered by Local Planning Authorities. The sites included cover anything from planned open spaces, such as town squares, to gardens and grounds.
Malvern Hills has 6 nationally registered parks and gardens:
- Abberley Hall
- Croome Court
- Pirton Park
- Madresfield Court
- Kyre Park
- Witley Court
A register has been compiled of the nationally registered sites by Historic England. Search the register on the Historic England website.
Locally Registered gardens can be received on request from the Heritage Team at the Council via
For further information please contact:
Useful links: