'One of the worst cases of heritage vandalism': Council slammed after historic stolen Mirfield stones replaced with tarmac
An outraged councillor has accused Kirklees Council of “one of the worst cases of heritage vandalism” in Mirfield.
Historic paving stones stolen from outside the town’s grade II listed St Mary’s Church have been replaced with tarmac – a move which has infuriated one of Mirfield’s ward members, Councillor Martyn Bolt.
"It is one of the worst cases of heritage vandalism second only to the people who stole them in the first place,” he said.
Planning legislation states that preservation of the surroundings of a listed asset should be given special consideration as this can affect the overall setting.
With this in mind, Coun Bolt accused the council of “hypocrisy”, saying that the council expects developers making planning applications to uphold this regulation while “flouting” it themselves.
A Kirklees Council spokesperson said: “We were notified of the stone theft from the adopted highway network around St Mary’s Church, Mirfield.
"The council has property insurance in place but this does not extend to theft or damage to highway assets.
“A highways technician visited the site to assess repairs needed to make the footpath safe for users.
"The stolen stone was not within the curtilage of the listed buildings nearby so a like-for-like replacement was not required.
"The repairs carried out did not need planning permission or listed building consent, and were completed in line with our statutory duties under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980.”
If you have a story to share, you can contact our reporting team by emailing [email protected].