"Conservation Area Character Appraisals help residents and the council to understand the history of an area and why it is special. They help shape future developments and planning policies, as well as giving residents an idea of what enhancements could be made."

This link gives access to download the latest Conservation Area Character Appraisals across the Chichester District and notes where these are under review. For ease of reference, we will copy and paste the Landscape and Trees" extracts for the Chichester CACA below. Read these alongside the Chichester CACA Maps to understand the extents of the different Character Areas and the full document for other contexts.

This version "was adopted as a material consideration in planning decision by Chichester District Council on the 7th June 2016.

The information contained in the appraisal was originally collected during the period January to March 2004 and was reviewed and updated between 2014 and 2016. The omission of any feature from the text or accompanying maps should not be regarded as an indication that they are necessarily without significance or importance in conservation and planning terms." (page 4, downloaded March 2023).

WORK IN PROGRESS, March 2023 - please bear with us (will be completed and presentation improved as time allows).

There are other references to trees in the document and these may be added.

CHAPTER 4  - THE CHARACTER AND APPEARANCE OF THE CHICHESTER CONSERVATION AREA (part of)

pages 14/15:

“TREES, LANDSCAPE AND OPEN SPACES

Whilst much of the City centre consists of a tight urban grain, parts of the Conservation Area are more open and well landscaped. These open spaces make a positive contribution to the character of the Conservation Area and the setting of the historic City. The most significant are:

   INTRA-MURAL

• Priory Park – a public park in the north-east quadrant
• Parts of the Cathedral Close and the gardens of the Bishop’s Palace
• The City Walls and their immediate setting

   EXTRA-MURAL

• Litten Gardens, St Pancras
• Part of Oaklands Park
• Jubilee Park, Priory Road Recreation Ground, New Park Road
• Brewery Field, Orchard Avenue
• Whyke Lane recreation ground – the site of the Roman amphitheatre off The Hornet
• Area around the canal basin and along the Chichester Ship Canal
• Westgate Fields, the playing fields and grassed areas to either side of the Avenue de Chartres
• University Campus Chichester

Trees are important in all of these spaces and the most significant are marked on the Townscape Appraisal maps. A ‘Tree Trail’ has been prepared for Chichester under the Tree Council Warden Scheme. Copies are available from the City Council offices in North Street."*

*The latest version of the Chichester City Tree Trail is only available in an electronic format. Find it on this website here.

Character Area 1 (intra-mural) North-east quadrant: St Martin’s Square, Priory Park, Little London and East Street

page 29:
“LANDSCAPE AND TREES

This part of the Conservation Area is dominated by Priory Park and its castle motte. It is defined to the north east by the city walls which are essentially bare of trees as a result of their Scheduled Monument Status. This means that the trees immediately outside the walls in Jubilee Park provide a significant element in the setting of the area. The southern boundary of Priory Park is established by an avenue of trees which further enhance the green character of the park. Within the park, the Norman motte provides a relief to the otherwise flat area. Outside the park to the south and west in the built-up area small pockets of greenery provide a contrast to the density of buildings. The hidden gem of St Martin’s gardens is especially charming. In the garden of St Mary’s Hospital there are important trees which complement those in the Little London car park. Even single trees are important in this part of the Conservation Area and the Holm Oak (Quercus ilex) in East Row is of particular note.”

Character Area 2 (intra-mural) South-east quadrant: The Pallants and South Street

page 34:
“LANDSCAPE AND TREES

Many of the fine mature trees in this area are survivors from the gardens of the large houses such as Crawley Priory and East Pallant House that were dominant in the past. As such, they are both important reminders of the city’s historic form and provide a special relief to the hard surfaces of the car parks that have replaced those historic spaces. Still exerting an influence on the character of the area is the City Walls upon which are the gardens of St John’s Street and Market Avenue. Of special note is the so-called ‘Stride’s Beech’ (Fagus sylvatica purpurea) located at the southern end of St John’s Street, the entrance of which is marked by significant trees which act as a form of gateway.”

Character Area 3 (intra-mural) South-west quadrant: the Cathedral, Market Cross, and West Street

pages 38/39:
“LANDSCAPE AND TREES

The city walls form a firm southwestern edge to this area which is dominated by views of the cathedral and by the delight of the Bishop’s Garden which contains many special trees that enhance the setting of Chichester Cathedral. A tree trail has been prepared by West Sussex County Council for the City Council that identifies the area’s most important trees.

The southern boundary of West Street is marked by an avenue of Lime trees (Tilia cordata) which help to demarcate the public and ecclesiastical realms, however, they also screen views of the Cathedral from the Cross and further down West Street, The whole area between the Cathedral and the West Street frontages would benefit for a comprehensive review of its design in advance of any proposal to replace any of the trees to better connect the space to the wider city and open up views of the Cathedral. From West Street there are important views between buildings to large specimen trees in the gardens of the Prebendal School and to the Bishop’s Garden beyond.”

Character Area 4 (intra-mural) North-west quadrant: County Hall and North Street

page 44:
“LANDSCAPE AND TREES

The city walls define the north western edge of this area where there are still significant specimen trees on this part of the walls. However these are being lost over time and because of the Scheduled status of the walls are unlikely to be replaced. This means that the importance of existing trees in the back gardens of houses in Orchard Street and in the front of houses in North Walls and Regnum Court will grow in significance. A high proportion of this area is occupied by County Hall where trees are under the control of West Sussex County Council. A full schedule and map of these trees is available.”

Character Area 5 (extra-mural) St Pancras, The Hornet and the eastern suburbs

page 50:
“LANDSCAPE AND TREES

This is an area of contrasts. Close to the city walls the Jubilee Gardens provide a foil against which the walls are viewed. Further east the Litten War Memorial Garden and Recreation Ground are surrounded by trees that both define these open areas and provide a tree lined setting to major roads within the area. An especially important feature is the line of young Plane trees (Platanus x Hispanica) in the Recreation Grounds which provide a succession to the increasingly old Lime (Tilia cordata), Plane (Platanus x Hispanica) and Horse Chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum) trees in New Park Road. Full information on trees will be provided in the proposed Tree Management Strategy. The large open area of the Market Street car park is lined by semi-mature trees that both shade cars and soften the otherwise hard nature of the car park. Further east into Whyke there are few trees but these are especially important both as sign posts through the area and as a relief to the close grain of development that defines its character.”

Character Area 6 (extra-mural) Southgate, Chichester College and the Canal Basin

page 55:
“LANDSCAPE AND TREES

This area is marked by the green open spaces of the Westgate Fields. These set the scene for iconic views of the Cathedral. Avenues of trees along the Avenue de Chartres define these areas and provide a further green enhancement to the overall scene. Running east to west through the area are courses of the River Lavant which provide shady tree-lined walks that screen the bulky college buildings from general view. The southern part of the area and its extension to the A27 along the canal continue this theme of tree-lined waterside walks. The trees planted recently in association with the canalside development will grow in significance and will act as an important entrance to the Conservation Area with its noted view of the Cathedral and the Canal.”

Character Area 7 (extra-mural) Westgate and the western suburbs

page 61:
“LANDSCAPE AND TREES

There are a significant number of important and significant trees in this extended area. The Holm Oaks (Quercus ilex) outside the County Record Office, at Mercers’ offices, Westgate - London Plane (Platanus x Hispanica) and the recently planted London Plane (Platanus x hispanica) in the Westgate roundabout are important signpost trees. Well-trained Ashes (Fraxinus excelsior) in the Record Office car park and the range of mature specimen trees in The Brewery Fields provide a setting to this flank of the Conservation Area.”

Character Area 8 (extra-mural) Old Somerstown, Oaklands Park And The University

page 66:
“LANDSCAPE AND TREES

This area contains the largest area of open space in the Conservation Area. At its northern end it provides one of the rare elevated views down the Conservation Area. Oaklands Park is defined by rows of fine trees of mixed species down Broyle Road and College Lane. The trees are a vital part of the ‘Theatre in the Park’ characteristic of Chichester Festival Theatre. On Broyle Road in particular, there are some poor specimens that should be part of a programme of replacement. At the Northgate gyratory the trees in the grounds of St Paul’s Church form an especially important gateway marking the entry to the core of the city from the north and west. A similar signpost function is served by the trees at the bottom end of College Lane and on the Oaklands Way roundabout. There is a strong rural quality along College Lane’s tree-lined link with the Graylingwell Conservation Area to the north.”

Character Area 9 (extra-mural) Whyke

page 70:
“LANDSCAPE AND TREES

The area does not benefit from any significant public open spaces but the small private front gardens of the residential streets contribute the area’s suburban character. Mature trees including horse chestnut (Aesculus Hipposcantanum) and Holm Oak (Quercus Ilex) along the Hornet provide a significant signpost at the entrance of the area. Most trees are located within private gardens but some street trees, particularly in the verges at road junctions and along Whyke Road make an important contribution to that suburban character. Front gardens are mainly enclosed by low brick walls, some with low brick gate piers and feature brick courses. Some in Bognor Road are rendered. Some older walls also survive, some with flint enclosing rear gardens at corner plots, and there are some timber close boarded fences.”