Belchamp Walter, Mission Hut

The Mission Hut, Belchamp Walter is a Twentieth century temporary structure (shed) that is located on what would be 3 Hall Road Belchamp Walter. It is also known as the "Mission Room" and is shown on the current planning maps as "The Library".

The hut (hall/lbrary/room) is between Rose Cottage and Springgates Farm and opposite Cobweb Cottage. Neither Rose Cottage or Cobweb Cottage are listed buildings

It is not known for certain why the Mission Hut was commisioned and by whom.

The Library, Belchamp Walter

The Mission Hut is shown on the current planning maps ss the "Library". the reason for this is that a "traveling" library was setup in the mission hut at a time that was after the hut was used by the church for meetings or worship.

The Mission Hut is currently used as a storage facility.

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Newspaper Articles mentioning the Mission Hut

January 5th 1933 - Suffolk Free Press
An invalid chair has recently been purchased for the use in the parish of Belchamp Walter. It will be kept in the mission room and loaned free of charge to any parishioner on application to Miss Marjorie Pearson or Miss Mary Wright.

February 13th 1930 - Suffolk Free Press
A pleasing ceremony took place at the Mission Rooms Belchamp Walter on Tuesday evening when Mr Walter Deal was the recipient of a silver watch and a pair of ebony backed hair brushes with an illuminated address with the subscribers names on it, the words on the address were "Presented to Walter Deal in recognition of his services as Parish Warden of the church of St Mary the Virgin, Belchamp Walter from 1927 to 1930".

The plan below is not from 1930. It is from a current Braintree Planning map (2024)

Rose Cottage, Cobweb and the flint cottages opposite are not listed buildings but do have historical significance. Wheatley is a 20th century consruction but has no historical significance.

The proposed redevelopment of the mission hut site will be sympathetic to its surroundings and its location in the village.

Recommendation of the Heritage Report

Proposal for a "Building Report"

Due to the contribution the existing building has to the social history of the village it is appropriate a building record is carried out and archived at the local authorities record office to preserve the history of the building for public viewing. If appropriate, and at the discretion of the local authority, a notice board with photos and information on ‘The Mission Room’ could be erected at the front of the site for public information to assist in preserving the social history of the building.

WSI - Written Scheme of Investigation

Below is the requirement for a WSI that should be submitted in accordance with guidance from Historic England.

However, should the application be approved, a programme of historic building recording is recommended, prior to its demolition, in order to ensure an archived record of the building and its history is preserved. This should be undertaken by a suitably experienced and accredited buildings archaeologist, and a written scheme of investigation (WSI) would be required for approval prior to the recording work. The recording and final report should be undertaken to a suitable level (a Level 2 record is recommended in this instance, to provide a descriptive record and an account of the building’s history and use), in accordance with guidance from Historic England. The final report should be submitted the local authority for approval, no later than six months after the completion of the on-site recording.

The OS map (1980's) with an aerial overlay

The 1890's map with an aerial image can be seen on this link: The map of Belchamp Walter Mission Hut with an overlay on the National Library of Scotland's website.
Opens in new tab/window.

If you click on the link above you will see an aerial view of Hall Road showing the Mission Hut and its position. You will also see a slider control which you can use to reveal a map from the 1890's. You can see that the Mission Hut did not exist at that data.

You can also select other maps, Ordnance Survey or otherwise, to compare with the aerial view. You can also compare two OS maps over time.

Current OS Maps and OS Maps On-line

If you purchase a paper OS map currently you will be given the option to download an electronic version of the map. You can use this digital version on your Mobile Phone, tablet or computer. I have done this on many of my pages.

If you have an online copy of an OS map on your mobile device you can use it to locate your current location on the map. This is very usefull for navigation on a walk.

Planning Documents

I have removed these from the server as they are still available on the original planning application.

The Full Heritage Statement by J.B.D.C. is only available locally. It contains photographs of the internal and external construction, the surrounding buildings and some interesting map. The maps that are interest are that of the conservation area (1980) and the 1839 title map. No references are made to the sources of these maps apart from the dates.

Responses to the Braintree District Council Local plan Policy LLP 53 - Conservation Areas and LLP 54 are included in the Statement.

Four listed buildings are mentioned in the Statement, but not named. These buildings could be:

The Village Hall/School House
The Old Bake House
The railings outside The Old Bake House (not a building)
The Old Town House (not on map of Statement and not in Conservation Area).

So there are only 2 buildings that are grade II listed inside the Conservation Area. However, the Flint cottages on Bells and Hall Roads have "heritage" value as does the Old Forge and possibly Rose Cottage (although it has been heavily "modernised").

Springates Farm is a listed building but it is not inside the Conservation Area. The Old Forge should be listed in the same manner as Waits Farm and the Flint Cottages on Bells (North Waver), Hall (Croft) and Gestingthorpe (South Waver) Roads.

Belchamp Walter, Mission Hut

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