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Area Two (2 & 3)
Visitors
Romsey
and
District
Society
contact
Phoebe Merrick
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Look at Romsey
Town Design Statement for Romsey
Halterworth
Prepared by a team of volunteers in the area under the auspices of the
Romsey and District Society.
Settlement Pattern
Halterworth House
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The area was agricultural until after the Second World War, with a sand pit in the vicinity of what became Benedict Close. A few houses were built along the east side of Halterworth Lane before the Second World War. The oldest of these is Halterworth House which was built before the First World War.
The houses along Halterworth Lane vary from modest bungalows to substantial houses. Mostly they are detached, but a few on the west side are semi-detached. The houses opposite Saxon Way have been built in regular plots, suggesting the original release of a block of land for building. The houses in the group opposite Seward Rise lie in irregular plots. This implies a very different development history. |
| Halterworth School lies back from the road and is well provided with open space. The school was opened in 1971 to meet the needs of the new population of Halterworth and Whitenap. |
Halterworth School from Halterworth Lane
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Monfort Heights with Avenue of limes
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Montfort College stands in its own landscaped grounds as do Montfort Lodge and Grosvenor Court. Montfort College had been built as a Catholic Seminary in 1911 and was converted to flats in the 1980s, when an additional building was constructed. The nearby houses in Montfort Close and Montfort Heights were built at about the same time as the conversion was made. They are substantial detached dwellings. The Montfort Fathers still own land in the area. |
The whole area was built as private housing by several developers. Many of the streets form closes off Saxon Way, and the street pattern is heavily influenced by the slope of the land. This is particularly apparent in the north-east part of the area which was developed later than the rest. There the roads slope steeply and there is no regular pattern in the layout of the houses.
| Throughout Halterworth, most houses lie parallel to the street line and open plan front gardens are normal. In Holyborne Road the backs of the main terrace face the road, and the fronts overlook Tadburn Meadows. The houses in Montfort Close and Montfort Heights are approached along private driveways as, in each case, the public highway only extends a short distance into each road. |
Holyborne Road
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The Vikings
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In parts of The Vikings and Wessex Gardens, the houses face onto greens and have no vehicular access to the front of the houses, although there is rear access to the houses in Wessex Gardens. The absence of nearby parking space causes some people in The Vikings to drive across the green onto their front gardens. |
| The houses throughout Halterworth are mostly semi-detached or built in terraces, although detached houses predominate in Hestia Close and Jenner Way. The area contains many small homes, as well as some substantial ones. |
Detached houses in Hestia Close
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Steps in Jenner Way
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There are many footpaths so that the locality is very permeable and people can walk from one part to another off road. In several places, there are flights of steps linking the higher ground to the lower parts of the valley. |
| Montfort Hall, near Benedict Close, is approached by footpaths from several directions. It acts as a focus for community activities. |
Montfort Hall
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Design Recommendations
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The footpaths are essential to pedestrian movement in the area and should be maintained.
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Open and Other spaces
Playground in Tadburn Meadows
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The primary open space in Halterworth is Tadburn Meadows, a public open space and Local Nature Reserve formed in the wetland and woodland adjacent to Tadburn Lake. This is a strip of ancient woodland through which paths and streams are found, together with a glade of open grassland and a children’s playground. |
| The northern boundary of the area is formed by the railway and a substantial and visually intrusive security fence. This is necessary for safety and security reasons to prevent people crossing the line or placing obstructions upon it. There is no crossing point from Tadburn Meadows to the houses on the north side of the valley. |
Fence by railway line
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Tadburn Meadows is a resource widely used by the residents of Halterworth who have formed a volunteer group called Tadburn Conservation Volunteers to help look after the area. Tadburn Meadows is an important habitat for native wildlife, such as frogs, water voles and a large number of bats, butterflies, moths and birds.
There is an open green to the south-west of Benedict Close which includes the disused burial ground of the Montfort Fathers. This plot is surrounded by a laurel hedge. The green includes a short length of open stream which is home to a colony of smooth newts. Nearby are Montfort Hall and its car park. The area immediately around the hall is surrounded by a bank of earth thus giving privacy to the adjacent houses and reducing any noise.
Apart from these substantial pieces of open land, there are a number of grassy swards across Halterworth. The largest of these lies to the north of Feltham Close, and leads into a footpath alongside the railway to Tadburn Meadow. Unfortunately, the path by the railway does not extend eastward to join up with Halterworth Lane by the level crossing, but is diverted southwards into Hestia Close.
Open land at Wessex Gardens
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There are several pieces of open grassland in Seward Rise, some of which are surrounded by hedges, particularly of laurel.
There are small greens in the vicinity of Avon Crescent, Ashdown Way, Hereward Close, Wessex Gardens and The Vikings. Many of the pavements have a grass border between footway and road. Montfort College lies in its own landscaped grounds. |
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