About the Downley Common Conservation Area
The Downley Common Conservation Area covers about 34 hectares and was designated by Buckinghamshire Council in 1986. Inside the boundary are 17 listed buildings, all Grade II. 14 Tree Preservation Order records overlap the area; every other tree here still needs six weeks’ notice before work.
What changes inside the conservation area
Conservation areas are “Article 2(3) land”. You keep most permitted development rights, but these are removed or tightened.
- Rear extensionElsewhere: 3 m · 6 m with PANo 6 m / 8 m prior approval
- Two-storey extensionElsewhere: 3 mNeeds planning permission
- Side extensionElsewhere: Half the widthNeeds planning permission
- Loft conversionElsewhere: 50 m³Needs planning permission
- Garden roomElsewhere: 2.5 m high by boundariesNot beside the house
- PorchElsewhere: 3 m²Same limits
- Solar panelsElsewhere: 0.2 m projectionSame limits
- Air source heat pumpElsewhere: 1 unitNot facing the road
- Fences, walls and gatesElsewhere: 2 m · 1 m by a roadSame limits
- External claddingElsewhere: Matching materialsNeeds planning permission
- Tree workElsewhere: No notice6 weeks’ notice to the council
- Demolition (over 115 m³)Elsewhere: AllowedNeeds planning permission
Limits for a semi-detached house under the GPDO 2015. An Article 4 direction can remove more.
Article 4 directions here
These overlap the conservation area. Householder directions remove more of the rights above; change-of-use ones don’t affect extending a house.
- Former Wycombe Rural District - Poultry ProductionChange of use
Listed buildings in the conservation area
Any work affecting these needs listed building consent, inside or out. Each links to its entry on the National Heritage List.
- Blacksmith's CottageGrade II
- Diamond CottageGrade II
- Downley Farm CottageGrade II
- Downley FarmhouseGrade II
- Flint Barn at Downley Farm on the East Side of FarmyardGrade II
- Moor CottageGrade II
- Mountjoy's RetreatGrade II
- Numbers 1 and 2 Chapel CottageGrade II
- Pant Y MaesGrade II
- Peters CottageGrade II
- Shelter Shed at Downley Farm Approximately 10 Metres to North of StableGrade II
- Shelter Shed Linking Flint and Weatherboard Barns, At North East Corner of Farmyard at Downley FarmGrade II
- St David'sGrade II
- Stable at Downley Farm on North Side of FarmyardGrade II
- The Old SmithyGrade II
- Weatherboard Barn at Downley Farm on North Side of FarmyardGrade II
- Well CottageGrade II
The council’s appraisal
WEBDownley Common Conservation Area AppraisalBuckinghamshire Council’s description of the area’s character — what planners look at when you apply.Open on council site ↗Nearby conservation areas
Boundary and listed buildings from Buckinghamshire Council and Historic England via planning.data.gov.uk (OGL). Guidance only — not an official council check.