In 2021, as part of the Neighbourhood Plan
revision, EBPC commissioned the “Historic
Landscape Survey of East Bergholt and The
Cultural Legacy of East Bergholt” report.
This report highlighted the international
status of our village landscapes. We can
still see today the same scenes that
Constable painted and made famous over
200 years ago.
As a result of this report, in Spring 2025,
Babergh District Council jointly with EBPC
commissioned the “East Bergholt
Conservation Area Appraisal” report in
order to assess the value of conserving this
landscape. This report summarises the
option to extend East Bergholt’s
conservation area to conserve our unique
Constable landscapes for the benefit of
future generations. .
The Parish Council is asked to:
-agree and approve the areas promoted
in this document for conservation area
status.
-Agree that EBPC will hold public
information events to inform residents
of the village about the proposed
conservation area extension alongside
Babergh’s formal consultation
process.
East Bergholt Parish Council, Conservation Extension Report, 12.2.26

The village of East Bergholt grew up as a series of settlements around the old common land called The Heath. The photo on the left show the heart of the village and
Gaston End. Further to the north and east in the second photo are Pitts End, Puttocks End, East End and Bakers End (now Eley’s corner). The Heath was enclosed
(privatized) in 1816 but still largely remains open field land.
Over time the “Ends” began to be joined up and the photos today clearly show how East Bergholt has developed as a ribbon around the perimeter of our old Heath. . In the
1960s there was an intrusion into the Heath itself when Chaplins Road and Richardsons Road were built, and further intrusion with the building of St James Place in the
2020s. However a large section of the Heath still remains. The section of the Heath closest to the village heart, Gaston End, Pitts End, and Puttocks End is a very popular
open space which creates and maintains the village’s sense of place. Despite the growth in housing, all parts of the village retain a rural feel due to this intrusion of the
countryside right into the heart of the village. The footpath that crosses the Heath, now known as The Donkey Track, is a very popular daily walk for many residents because
of its rural views even from the village heart. From here the views of the village are the same views that our most famous resident, John Constable, made famous. Of all his
paintings, sketches and drawings representing East Bergholt, 84 were made in the village heart and this area of the Heath and 46 were done in the Flatford area.
East Bergholt from Old Hall, looking north and east. East Bergholt from Flatford football pitch looking north and west
The Old Heath creates a donut in the centre of the 6 settlements that form East Bergholt village

In 2021, with a revision to the East Bergholt Neighbourhood Plan underway,
the Parish Council first approached Babergh to review the conservation area.
The PC approved the 5 areas shown in this map to submit to Babergh as
options for extending the conservation area.
The core reasons for extending the conservation area are:
•East Bergholt is the village at the heart of the internationally famous
“Constable Country”, the location of Constable’s birth and of over 130 of
his artistic works, including all of his best known “6-footers” such as The
Haywain, The White Horse and The Leaping Horse.
•Green open spaces reach into the very heart of the village and,despite
significant housing growth in the 1960s and 2020s we remain a truly rural
place. Most of the scenes that Constable painted are still the scenes we
see today as we walk around the village. Our residents feel this unique
landscape and this heritage needs to be conserved.
•The areas we identified are essential to the sense of place and character
of East Bergholt. They represent the historic setting of the village and our
place in rural heritage. As many residents tell us, we are a village and not a
town.
In 2023, and again in 2025, EBPC consulted with village residents on
promoting these areas for consideration to expand our currently limited
conservation area. There was a large majority approval for this submission
for Babergh’s consideration.

From Spring 2025 to date, the PC has been working closely
with Babergh to identify a starting point for conservation
areas. To this end we jointly commissioned HCUK to
undertake a Conservation Area Appraisal. The result of this
work is the document presented to the council this evening.
The agreed position between Babergh officers and the PC
working group is that the priority area for conservation area
extension should be those areas of the village that are most
clearly represented in Constable’s works and our heritage.
These areas are unique as in most respects you can still see
the same landscapes that Constable drew. the places best
known to people around the world through his paintings,
sketches and drawings.
The area to be included in this proposed extension to the
conservation area is outlined in the map to the left .The
extension area includes:
•The built area to the west of Gaston Street up to Gaston
End, and on into the area of Quintons Road and north of
Heath Rd (the B1070) with its clusters of listed buildings
and the green open space of the Box Iron, itself an old
remnant of the Heath.
•The rural area of the old Heath to the east of Gaston St,
south of Chaplins/Richardson’s Road, north of Rectory
Hill including the fields either side of the Donkey Track
•Gandish Road built area with the cluster of Erith
buildings including The Constable Hall and the Peter
Barefoot designed Sports Pavillion.
•Burnt Oak and south to include the fields inside the
circuit of Flatford Road
•The Flatford area including Flatford Mill and Willy Lotts
cottage and fields and banks of the canalized River Stour,
the scene of the big 6-footer paintings including The
Haywain.

Major landmarks

Appendix 1 : Timetable for conservation area designation
Babergh District Council are responsible for assessing and designating Conservation Areas. When EBPC published the “Historic Landscape Survey of East Bergholt
and The Cultural Legacy of East Bergholt” report it was widely welcomed as an authoritative piece of work and Babergh agreed to work with us to see if there was an
opportunity to increase the designated conservation area of the village.
Using the evidence from this first report EBPC worked up a proposal to consider areas for extension to the currently limited area conservation area which runs along
the eastern side of Gaston Street and down Rectory Hill as far as Burnt Oak. The ares outlined on page 3 represented the areas for discussion. We consulted the
village on these areas in 2023 and again in Feb 2025, receiving a high volume of support for the proposals. With this support we approached Babergh to ask them to
consider extending the conservation area.
In spring 2025 Babergh and EBPC jointly funded a formal assessment report to look at the charactoristics of the landscape as well as the built areas of East Bergholt
to determine which would justify an extension to the designated conservation area. Based upon the history of John Constable and his work in putting East Bergholt on
the international map, this report concludes that the area outlined in page 4 is the priority areas for progressing to conservation area status. This report is a final draft,
and there are still minor corrections and amendments that can be made.
The next steps are to consult with our residents. The proposal is that EBPC continues to engage with our residents directly with informal consultation which will
include a public meeting, meetings with groups and organisations of the village, several pitstop surgeries so that our residents can understand the reasons behind the
designation and just why EBPC considers this to be an important step in securing East Bergholt’s future as a village.
The next formal step is for Babergh to undertake a formal consultation process, with a formal on-line questionaire. As part of this process, EBPC can also host a
formal public meeting to allow people a final chance to ask questions and to make their views known.
The proposed timetable is:
12 Feb EBPC approval of the proposal
21 Feb EBPC commences informal consultation process including a public meeting, meetings with local groups, opportunities to meet and question councillors
Late March Babergh will write to all residents of the areas proposed for conservation designation to invite their views on the proposals. EBPC will host a formal public
meeting for all residents of the village.
April/May Babergh will undertake the formal consultation with Babergh District councillors to reach the decision
Both Babergh officers and EBPC councillors are working very hard to ensure the programme works efficiently with an aim to promote our new designated conservation
area n this year of the 250
th
celebration of Constable’s birth, and if possible by the actual date of his birth, June 11 2026.