A contractor ( North American English ) or builder ( British English ), is responsible for the day-to-day oversight of a construction site, management of vendors and trades, and the communication of information to all involved parties throughout the course of a building project.
92-682: The BT Tower is a grade II listed communications tower in Fitzrovia , London , England, owned by BT Group (formerly British Telecom). It was also known as the GPO Tower and the Post Office Tower , and later officially renamed the Telecom Tower . The main structure is 581 feet (177 m) high, with a further section of aerial rigging bringing the total height to 620 feet (189 m). Upon completion in 1964, it overtook
184-646: A heritage asset legally protected) is called 'designation'. Several different terms are used because the processes use separate legislation: buildings are 'listed'; ancient monuments are 'scheduled', wrecks are 'protected', and battlefields, gardens and parks are 'registered'. A heritage asset is a part of the historic environment that is valued because of its historic, archaeological, architectural or artistic interest. Only some of these are judged to be important enough to have extra legal protection through designation. Buildings that are not formally listed but still judged as being of heritage interest can still be regarded as
276-436: A material consideration in the planning process. As a very rough guide, listed buildings are structures considered of special architectural and historical importance. Ancient monuments are of 'national importance' containing evidential values, and can on many occasions also relate to below ground or unoccupied sites and buildings. Almost anything can be listed. Buildings and structures of special historic interest come in
368-661: A building. Listed building consent must be obtained from local authorities before any alteration to a listed structure. There are about 8,500 listed buildings in Northern Ireland, divided into four grades, defined as follows: In Scotland, listing was begun by a provision in the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1947, and the current legislative basis for listing is the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 . As with other matters regarding planning, conservation
460-476: A circumference of 59 m (194 ft). The display is switched off at 10:30pm each day. On 31 October 2009, the screen began displaying a countdown of the number of days until the start of the London Olympics in 2012. In April 2019, the display spent almost a day displaying a Windows 7 error message. In October 2009, The Times reported that the revolving restaurant would be reopened in time for
552-418: A client proposes to award a contract is often referred to as a "preferred contractor". A general contractor is responsible for providing all of the material, labor, equipment (such as heavy equipment and tools) and services necessary for the construction of the project. A general contractor often hires specialized subcontractors to perform all or portions of the construction work. When using subcontractors,
644-463: A commitment to sharing the understanding of the historic environment and more openness in the process of designation. In 2008, a draft Heritage Protection Bill was subject to pre-legislative scrutiny before its passage through UK Parliament. The legislation was abandoned despite strong cross-party support, to make room in the parliamentary legislative programme for measures to deal with the credit crunch, though it may be revived in future. The proposal
736-399: A design professional, such as an architect .The general contractor may also assume the role of construction manager, responsible for overseeing the project while assuming financial and legal risks.There are several types of risks can occur include cost overruns, delays, and liabilities related to safety or contract breaches. Prior to formal appointment, the selected general contractor to whom
828-526: A few years until the tower has been vacated. The tower was commissioned by the General Post Office (GPO). Its primary purpose was to support the microwave aerials then used to carry telecommunications traffic from London to the rest of the country, as part of the General Post Office microwave network . It was to be built by end of 1963, and cost £1.5M, on Howland Street. It replaced a much shorter steel lattice tower which had been built on
920-404: A group that is—for example, all the buildings in a square. This is called 'group value'. Sometimes large areas comprising many buildings may not justify listing but receive the looser protection of designation as a conservation area . The specific criteria include: The state of repair of a building is not generally deemed to be a relevant consideration for listing. Additionally: Although
1012-451: A list of locally listed buildings as separate to the statutory list (and in addition to it). There is no statutory protection of a building or object on the local list but many receive a degree of protection from loss through being in a Conservation Area or through planning policy. Councils hope that owners will recognise the merits of their properties and keep them unaltered if at all possible. Listing began later in Northern Ireland than in
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#17327729465561104-403: A listed building is a criminal offence and owners can be prosecuted. A planning authority can also insist that all work undertaken without consent be reversed at the owner's expense. See also Category:Grade II* listed buildings for examples of such buildings across England and Wales. See also Category:Grade II listed buildings for examples of such buildings across England and Wales. It
1196-687: A listed structure. Applications for consent are made on a form obtained from Historic Environment Scotland. After consulting the local planning authority, the owner, where possible, and an independent third party, Historic Environment Scotland makes a recommendation on behalf of the Scottish Ministers. The scheme for classifying buildings is: There are about 47,400 listed buildings in Scotland. Of these, around 8 percent (some 3,800) are Category A, 50 percent are Category B, and 42 percent are listed at Category C. Although
1288-558: A non-statutory basis. Although a limited number of 'ancient monuments' were given protection under the Ancient Monuments Protection Act 1882 , there was reluctance to restrict the owners of occupied buildings in their actions related to their property. The extensive damage to buildings caused by German bombing during World War II prompted efforts to list and protect buildings that were deemed to be of particular architectural merit. Three hundred members of
1380-532: A process of reform, including a review of the criteria used for listing buildings. A Review of Heritage Policy in 2006 was criticised, and the Government began a process of consultation on changes to Planning Policy Guidance 15 , relating to the principles of selection for listing buildings in England. The government's White Paper "Heritage Protection for the 21st Century", published on 8 March 2007, offered
1472-400: A program of their needs and selects a site (often with an architect). The architect assembles a design team of consulting engineers and other experts to design the building and specify the building systems. Today contractors frequently participate on the design team by providing pre-design services such as providing estimations of the budget and scheduling requirements to improve the economy of
1564-519: A provision in the Town and Country Planning Act 1947 covering England and Wales, and the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1947 covering Scotland. Listing was first introduced into Northern Ireland under the Planning (Northern Ireland) Order 1972. The listing process has since developed slightly differently in each part of the UK. The process of protecting the built historic environment (i.e. getting
1656-438: A reinforced concrete pyramid. The stainless steel clad windows were made by Henry Hope & Sons, of Halford Works, Smethwick. The tower was officially opened to the public on 19 May 1966, by Postmaster General Tony Benn (then known as Anthony Wedgwood Benn) and Billy Butlin , with HM Queen Elizabeth II having visited on 17 May 1966. As well as the communications equipment and office space, there were viewing galleries,
1748-557: A single document, the National Planning Policy Framework . A consultation draft of this was published on 25 July 2011 and the final version on 27 March 2012. This became a material consideration in planning matters on publication. It has since been revised in 2018, 2019 and 2021. The Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission in England and Cadw in Wales list buildings under three grades, with Grade I being
1840-519: A souvenir shop and a revolving restaurant on the 34th floor; this was called The Top of the Tower, and operated by Butlins . It made one revolution every 23 minutes. Butlins were given the lease to restaurant in November 1963; it would open by the end of 1965. The section above the microwave dishes had two observation floors, a tea bar, a revolving restaurant, a cocktail bar, and above that a kitchen. At
1932-646: A team of plumbers , electricians , bricklayers , carpenters , iron workers , technicians , handymans , architects and roofers . General Contractors build their business by networking with potential clients, buying basic construction tools, and ensuring that their subcontractors complete high-quality work. General Contractors do not usually complete much construction work themselves, but they need to be familiar with construction techniques so they can manage workers effectively. Other reasons include access to specialist skills, flexible hiring and firing, and lower costs. A property owner or real estate developer develops
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#17327729465562024-618: A wide variety of forms and types, ranging from telephone boxes and road signs, to castles. Historic England has created twenty broad categories of structures, and published selection guides for each one to aid with assessing buildings and structures. These include historical overviews and describe the special considerations for listing each category. However, in 2020, the Supreme Court ruled in Dill v Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government and another that buildings in
2116-802: Is a power devolved to the Scottish Parliament and the Scottish Government . The authority for listing rests with Historic Environment Scotland (formerly Historic Scotland ), an executive agency of the Scottish Government, which inherited this role from the Scottish Development Department in 1991. The listing system is administered by Historic Environment Scotland on behalf of the Scottish Ministers. Listed building consent must be obtained from local authorities before any alteration to
2208-441: Is not unusual for historic sites, particularly large sites, to contain buildings with multiple, sometimes varying, designations. For example, Derwent Valley Mills , a World Heritage Site contains 838 listed buildings, made up of 16 listed at Grade I, 42 at Grade II* and 780 at Grade II. A further nine structures are Scheduled monuments . Many councils, for example, Birmingham City Council and Crawley Borough Council , maintain
2300-463: Is often said that the tower did not appear on Ordnance Survey maps, despite being a 177-metre (581 ft) tall structure in the middle of central London that was open to the public for about 15 years. However, this is incorrect; the 1:25,000 (published 1971) and 1:10,000 (published 1981) Ordnance Survey maps show the tower. It is also shown in the London A–Z street atlas from 1984. In February 1993,
2392-552: Is possible but is rare. One example is Anmer Hall in Norfolk, which was listed in 1984 and de-listed in 1988. In an emergency, the local planning authority can serve a temporary " Building Preservation Notice " (BPN), if a building is in danger of demolition or alteration in such a way that might affect its historic character. This remains in force for six months until the Secretary of State decides whether or not to formally list
2484-448: Is provided for some buildings in current use for worship, but only in cases where the relevant religious organisation operates its own equivalent permissions procedure. Owners of listed buildings are, in some circumstances, compelled to repair and maintain them and can face criminal prosecution if they fail to do so or if they perform unauthorised alterations. When alterations are permitted, or when listed buildings are repaired or maintained,
2576-915: The California Contractors State License Board (CSLB) if the total cost of one or more contracts on the project is $ 500 or more. In every state that requires a license, a surety bond is required as part of the licensing process, with the exception of Louisiana , where bonding requirements may vary in different parishes. Not all states require General Contractor licenses - these include Vermont , New Hampshire and Maine , among others. Some general contractors obtain bachelor's degrees in construction science , building science , surveying , construction safety, or other disciplines. General Contractors often learn about different aspects of construction, including masonry , carpentry , framing , and plumbing . Aspiring general contractors communicate with subcontractors and may learn
2668-540: The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) to deliver the government policy on the protection to historic buildings and other heritage assets. The decision about whether or not to list a building is made by the Secretary of State, although the process is administered in England by Historic England . The listed building system in Wales formerly also operated under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990, as in England, until this
2760-642: The London Air Traffic Control Centre at West Drayton . The tower was designed by the architects of the Ministry of Public Building and Works : the chief architects were Eric Bedford and G. R. Yeats. Typical for its time, the building is concrete clad in glass. The narrow cylindrical shape was chosen because of the requirements of the communications aerials: the building will shift no more than 25 centimetres (10 in) in wind speeds of up to 150 km/h (95 mph). Initially,
2852-579: The Millbank Tower as the tallest structure in London until 1980, when it was overtaken by the NatWest Tower . It was opened in 1965 by Prime Minister Harold Wilson . A 360° coloured LED screen near the top of the tower displays news across central London. In February 2024, BT Group announced the sale of the tower to MCR Hotels , who plan to turn it into a hotel. BT will retain ownership for
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2944-701: The Royal Institute of British Architects and the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings were dispatched to prepare the list under the supervision of the Inspectorate of Ancient Monuments, with funding from the Treasury. The listings were used as a means to determine whether a particular building should be rebuilt if it was damaged by bombing, with varying degrees of success. In Scotland,
3036-481: The UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology and this has continued in a more permanent form as BT Tower Observatory, an urban atmospheric pollution observatory to help monitor air quality in the capital. The aim is to measure pollutant levels above ground level to determine their source. One area of investigation is the long-range transport of fine particles from outside the city. On 21 February 2024, BT Group announced
3128-462: The United Kingdom , Australia and some British Commonwealth countries, the term 'general contractor' was gradually superseded by builders during the early twentieth century. This was the term used by major professional, trade, and consumer organizations when issuing contracts for construction work, and thus the term 'general contractor' fell out of use except in large organizations where
3220-673: The United States and Asia , the terms general contractor (or simply "contractor"), prime contractor and main contractor are often interchangeable when referring to small local companies that perform residential work. These companies are represented by trade organizations such as the NAHB . Prime contractor is a term defined in the US law. Statutory definitions of prime contract, prime contractor, subcontract, and subcontractor are in 41 U.S.C. § 8701 . The prime contractor term
3312-465: The United States , a contractor may be a sole proprietor managing a project and performing labor or carpentry work, have a small staff, or may be a very large company managing billion dollar projects. Some builders build new homes, some are remodelers, some are developers. A general contractor is a construction manager employed by a client, usually upon the advice of the project's architect or engineer . General Contractors are mainly responsible for
3404-558: The 2008 draft legislation was abandoned, Historic England (then part of English Heritage) published a single list of all designated heritage assets within England in 2011. The National Heritage List for England is an online searchable database which includes 400,000 English Listings, this includes individual listed buildings, groups of multiple listed buildings which share the same listing, scheduled monuments, registered parks and gardens, protected historic wrecks and registered battlefields and World Heritage Sites in one place. The 400,000 in
3496-470: The 2012 London Olympics. However, in December 2010, it was further announced that the plans to reopen had now been "quietly dropped", with no explanation of the decision. For the tower's 50th anniversary, the 34th floor was opened for three days from 3 to 5 October 2015 to 2,400 winners of a lottery. The BT Tower was given Grade II listed building status in 2003. Several of the defunct antennae attached to
3588-763: The DCLG published Planning Policy Statement 5 , "Planning for the Historic Environment". This replaced PPG15 and set out the government's national policies on the conservation of the historic environment in England. PPS5 was supported by a Practice Guide, endorsed by the DCLG, the DCMS, and English Heritage, which explained how to apply the policies stated in PPS5. In December 2010, the Department for Communities and Local Government announced that in England all PPSs and Planning Policy Guidance Notes would be replaced by
3680-665: The Firestone demolition, the Secretary of State for the Environment , Michael Heseltine , also initiated a complete re-survey of buildings to ensure that everything that merited preservation was on the lists. In England, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) works with Historic England (an agency of the DCMS), and other government departments, e.g. Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) and
3772-519: The Government's Heritage Protection Reform (HPR) report in July 2003 by the DCMS, entitled "Protecting our historic environment: Making the system work better", asked questions about how the current designation systems could be improved. The HPR decision report "Review of Heritage Protection: The Way Forward", a green paper published in June 2004 by the DCMS, committed the UK government and English Heritage to
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3864-481: The MP Kate Hoey used the tower as an example of trivial information being kept officially secret, and joked that she hoped parliamentary privilege allowed her to confirm that the tower existed and to state its street address. The tower is still in use, and is the site of a major UK communications hub. Microwave links have been replaced by subterranean optical fibre links for most mainstream purposes, but
3956-550: The Planning and Development Act 2000, although the statutory term in Ireland is " protected structure ". A listed building may not be demolished, extended, or altered without permission from the local planning authority, which typically consults the relevant central government agency. In England and Wales , a national amenity society must be notified of any work to be done on a listed building which involves any element of demolition. Exemption from secular listed building control
4048-696: The UK's architectural heritage; England alone has 14,500 listed places of worship (4,000 Grade I, 4,500 Grade II* and 6,000 Grade II) and 45% of all Grade I listed buildings are places of worship. Some of the listed churches are no longer in use; between 1969 and 2010, some 1,795 churches were closed by the Church of England , equalling roughly 11% of the stock, with about a third listed as Grade I or Grade II. The criteria for listing include architectural interest, historic interest and close historical associations with significant people or events. Buildings not individually noteworthy may still be listed if they form part of
4140-638: The United States, there are no federal licensing requirements to become a general contractor, but most US states require general contractors to obtain a local license to operate. It is the states' responsibility to define these requirements: for example, in the state of California , the requirements are stated as follows: With a few exceptions, all businesses or individuals who work on any building, highway, road, parking facility, railroad, excavation, or other structure in California must be licensed by
4232-549: The architectural and historic interest. The Secretary of State, who may seek additional advice from others, then decides whether to list or delist the building. In England, the authority for listing is granted to the Secretary of State by the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 . Listed buildings in danger of decay are listed on the Historic England 'Heritage at Risk' Register . In 1980, there
4324-587: The bomb was claimed by members of the Angry Brigade , a far-left anarchist collective. A call was also made by a person claiming to be the Kilburn Battalion of the IRA . That act resulted in the tower being largely closed to the general public. The restaurant was closed to the public for security reasons a matter of months after the bombing in 1971. In 1980, Butlins' lease expired. Public access to
4416-456: The building ceased in 1981. The tower is sometimes used for corporate events, such as a children's Christmas party in December, BBC's telethon Children in Need ( Children in Need 2010 was hosted from the tower), and other special events; even though it is closed, the tower retains its revolving floor, providing a full panorama over London and the surrounding area. The first documented race up
4508-476: The building is by two high-speed lifts, which travel at a top speed of 1400 feet per minute (7 metres per second (15.7 mph)) and reach the top of the building in under 30 seconds. The original equipment was installed by the Express Lift Company of Northampton, but it has since been replaced by new elevators manufactured by ThyssenKrupp . Due to the confined space in the tower's core, removing
4600-411: The building were protected by this listing, meaning they could not be removed unless the appropriate listed building consent was granted. Permission for the removal of the defunct antennae was approved in 2011 on safety grounds, as they were in a bad state of repair and the fixings were no longer secure. The last of the antennae was removed in December 2011, leaving the core of the tower visible. Entry to
4692-571: The building's height and its having a tower crane jib across the top virtually throughout the whole construction period, it gradually became a very prominent landmark that could be seen from almost anywhere in London. A question was raised in Parliament in August 1963 about the crane. Reginald Bennett MP asked the Minister of Public Buildings and Works , Geoffrey Rippon , how, when the crane on
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#17327729465564784-557: The building. Until the passing of the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013 an application for a Certificate of Immunity from Listing (CoI) could only be made if planning permission was being sought or had been obtained in England. However, the changes brought about by the Act means that now anyone can ask the Secretary of State to issue a Certificate of Immunity in respect of a particular building at any time. In England and Wales,
4876-407: The decision to list a building may be made on the basis of the architectural or historic interest of one small part of the building, the listing protection nevertheless applies to the whole building. Listing applies not just to the exterior fabric of the building itself, but also to the interior, fixtures, fittings, and objects within the curtilage of the building even if they are not fixed. De-listing
4968-408: The early 2000s introduced a 360° coloured lighting display at the top of the tower. Seven colours were programmed to vary constantly at night and intended to appear as a rotating globe to reflect BT's "connected world" corporate styling. The coloured lights give the tower a conspicuous presence on the London skyline at night. In October 2009, a 360° full-colour LED-based display system was installed at
5060-435: The first 16 floors were for technical equipment and power. Above that was a 35-metre (115 ft) section for the microwave aerials, and above that were six floors of suites, kitchens, technical equipment, a revolving restaurant, and finally a cantilevered steel lattice tower. To prevent heat build-up, the glass cladding was of a special tint. The construction cost was £2.5 million. Construction began in June 1961; owing to
5152-511: The former are still in use at the tower. The second floor of the base of the tower contains the TV Network Switching Centre which carries broadcasting traffic and relays signals between television broadcasters, production companies, advertisers, international satellite services and uplink companies. The outside broadcast control is located above the former revolving restaurant, with the kitchens on floor 35. A renovation in
5244-810: The four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England , Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland , Cadw in Wales , and the Historic Environment Division of the Department for Communities in Northern Ireland . The classification schemes differ between England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland (see sections below). The term has also been used in the Republic of Ireland , where buildings are protected under
5336-412: The general contractor is responsible for overseeing the quality of all work performed by any and all of the workers and subcontractors. It is a best practice for general contractors to prioritize safety on the job site, and they are generally responsible for ensuring that work takes place following safe practices. A general contractor's responsibilities may include applying for building permits, advising
5428-507: The general contractor will submit a fixed price proposal or bid, cost-plus price or an estimate. The general contractor considers the cost of home office overhead, general conditions, materials, and equipment, as well as the cost of labor, to provide the owner with a price for the project. Contract documents may include drawings, project manuals (including general, supplementary, or special conditions and specifications), and addendum or modifications issued prior to proposal/bidding and prepared by
5520-602: The highest grade, as follows: There was formerly a non-statutory Grade III , which was abolished in 1970. Additionally, Grades A, B and C were used mainly for Anglican churches in active use, loosely corresponding to Grades I, II and III. These grades were used mainly before 1977, although a few buildings are still listed using these grades. In 2010, listed buildings accounted for about 2% of English building stock. In March 2010, there were about 374,000 list entries, of which 92% were Grade II, 5.5% were Grade II* and 2.5% were Grade I. Places of worship are an important part of
5612-410: The listing should not be confused with the actual number of listed buildings, which will be much larger than the listing, because a listing can include more than one building that share the same listing number. The legislative frameworks for each type of historic asset remains unchanged. A photographic library of English listed buildings was started in 1999 as a snapshot of buildings listed at the turn of
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#17327729465565704-449: The main contractor is the top manager and a general contractor shares responsibilities with professional contractors. General contractors who conduct work for government agencies are often referred to as "builders". This term is also used in contexts where the customer's immediate general contractor is permitted to sub-contract or circumstances are likely to involve sub-contracting to specialist operators e.g. in various public services. In
5796-536: The management of listed buildings is the responsibility of local planning authorities and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (i.e., not DCMS, which originally listed the building). There is a general principle that listed buildings are put to 'appropriate and viable use' and recognition that this may involve the re-use and modification of the building. However, listed buildings cannot be modified without first obtaining Listed Building Consent through
5888-435: The management skills they need to run their own company. Experience in the construction industry as well as references from customers, business partners, or former employers are demanded. Some jurisdictions require candidates to provide proof of financing to own their own general contracting firm. General Contractors often run their own business. They hire subcontractors to complete specialized construction work and may manage
5980-478: The millennium. This is not an up-to-date record of all listed buildings in England – the listing status and descriptions are only correct as at February 2001. The photographs were taken between 1999 and 2008. It is maintained by the Historic England archive at the Images of England project website. The National Heritage List for England contains the up-to-date list of listed buildings. General contractor In
6072-454: The motors of the old lifts involved creating an access hole in the cast iron shaft wall, and then cutting the 3-ton winch machines into pieces and bringing them down in one of the functioning lifts. In the 1960s an Act of Parliament was passed to vary fire regulations, allowing the building to be evacuated by using the lifts – unlike other buildings of the time. In 2006, the tower began to be used for short-term air-quality observations by
6164-409: The overall coordination of a project and may also act as building designer and construction foreman (a tradesman in charge of a crew). A general contractor must first assess the project-specific documents (referred to as a bid, proposal, or tender documents). In the case of renovations, a site visit is required to get a better understanding of the project. Depending on the project delivery method ,
6256-671: The owners are often required to use specific materials or techniques. Although most sites appearing on the lists are buildings, other structures such as bridges, monuments, sculptures, war memorials, milestones and mileposts , and the Abbey Road zebra crossing made famous by the Beatles , are also listed. Ancient, military, and uninhabited structures, such as Stonehenge , are sometimes instead classified as scheduled monuments and are protected by separate legislation. Cultural landscapes such as parks and gardens are currently "listed" on
6348-430: The person they are hired by, securing the property, providing temporary utilities on site, managing personnel on site, providing site surveying and engineering, disposing or recycling of construction waste , monitoring schedules and cash flows, and maintaining accurate records. The general contractor may be responsible for some part of the design, referred to as the "contractor's design portion" ( JCT terminology). In
6440-577: The process slightly predated the war with the Marquess of Bute (in his connections to the National Trust for Scotland ) commissioning the architect Ian Lindsay in September 1936 to survey 103 towns and villages based on an Amsterdam model using three categories (A, B and C). The basis of the current more comprehensive listing process was developed from the wartime system. It was enacted by
6532-539: The relevant local planning authority. In Wales, applications are made using a form obtained from the relevant local authority. There is no provision for consent to be granted in outline. When a local authority is disposed to grant listed building consent, it must first notify the Welsh Parliament ( i.e. Cadw ) of the application. If the planning authority decides to refuse consent, it may do so without any reference to Cadw. Carrying out unauthorised works to
6624-571: The responsibility for the listing process rests with the Historic Environment Division of the Department for Communities , which took over the built heritage functions of the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (formerly the Environment and Heritage Service) following the break up of the Department of the Environment. Following the introduction of listing, an initial survey of Northern Ireland's building stock
6716-579: The rest of the UK: the first provision for listing was contained in the Planning (Northern Ireland) Order 1972; and the current legislative basis for listing is the Planning (Northern Ireland) Order 1991. Under Article 42 of the Order, the relevant Department of the Northern Ireland Executive is required to compile lists of buildings of "special architectural or historic interest". Since 2016,
6808-420: The roof of the neighbouring Museum telephone exchange in the late 1940s to provide a television link between London and Birmingham. The taller structure was required to protect the radio links' "line of sight" against some of the tall buildings in London then in the planning stage. These links were routed via other GPO microwave stations at Harrow Weald , Bagshot , Kelvedon Hatch and Fairseat, and to places like
6900-419: The sale of BT Tower to MCR Hotels , who plan to preserve the tower as a hotel. The tower has appeared in various novels, films, and television shows including Smashing Time , The Bourne Ultimatum , Space Patrol (1962) , Doctor Who , V for Vendetta , The Union and Danger Mouse . It is toppled by a giant kitten in the 1971 The Goodies episode " Kitten Kong ", a parody of King Kong . It
6992-456: The scheme must meet certain criteria – "a three-fold test which involved considering size, permanence and degree of physical attachment" – referred to as the Skerritts test in reference to a previous legal case in England. Both Historic Environment Scotland and Cadw produce guidance for owners. In England, to have a building considered for listing or delisting, the process is to apply to
7084-413: The secretary of state; this can be done by submitting an application form online to Historic England . The applicant does not need to be the owner of the building to apply for it to be listed. Full information including application form guidance notes are on the Historic England website. Historic England assesses buildings put forward for listing or delisting and provides advice to the Secretary of State on
7176-404: The top of the new Tower had fulfilled its purpose, he proposed to remove it. Rippon replied: "This is a matter for the contractors. The problem does not have to be solved for about a year but there appears to be no danger of the crane having to be left in situ." Construction reached 475 ft by August 1963. The revolving restaurant was prefabricated by Ransomes and Rapiers of Ipswich. The steel lattice
7268-423: The top of the tower, to replace the previous colour projection system. The new display, referred to by BT as the "Information Band", is wrapped around the 36th and 37th floors of the tower, 167 m (548 ft) up, and comprises 529,750 LEDs arranged in 177 vertical strips, spaced around the tower. The display was the largest of its type in the world, occupying an area of 280 m (3,000 sq ft) and with
7360-406: The top was a pulley room and above that the left motor room and ventilation plant. There were sixteen equipment floors between 115ft and 355ft. The restaurant was called 'Top of the Tower', where meals were about £4. In its first year the Tower hosted just under one million visitors and over 100,000 diners ate in the restaurant. A set of two stamps, designed by Clive Abbott (born 1933), 3d and 1/3,
7452-452: The top. Much of the telecommunications equipment made by GEC of Coventry. Due to its importance to the national communications network, information about the tower was designated an official secret. In 1978, the journalist Duncan Campbell was tried for collecting information about secret locations, and during the trial the judge ordered that the sites could not be identified by name; the tower could only be referred to as 'Location 23'. It
7544-406: The tower's stairs was on 18 April 1968, between University College London and Edinburgh University ; it was won by an Edinburgh runner in 4 minutes, 46 seconds. In 1969, eight university teams competed, with John Pearson from Manchester University winning in a time of 5 minutes, 6 seconds. The first microwave link would be to Norwich on 1 January 1965. The Met Office put their weather radar on
7636-593: Was already defined before the 8 March 1946 passage of An Act To eliminate the practice by subcontractors, under cost-plus-a-fixed-fee or cost reimbursable contacts of the United States, of paying fees or kick-backs, or of granting gifts or gratuities to employees of a cost-plus-a-fixed-fee or cost reimbursable prime contractors or of higher tier subcontractors for the purpose of securing the award of subcontracts or orders. (Pub. L.Tooltip Public Law (United States) 79–319, 60 Stat. 37) Licensing requirements to work legally on construction projects vary from locale to locale. In
7728-480: Was also the title of jazz band, the Dudley Moore Trio's track "G.P.O. Tower", from the soundtrack to the feature film Bedazzled (1967), directed by Stanley Donen , where it also appeared on screen. Listed building In the United Kingdom , a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of
7820-564: Was begun in 1974. By the time of the completion of this First Survey in 1994, the listing process had developed considerably, and it was therefore decided to embark upon a Second Survey, which is still ongoing, to update and cross-check the original information. Information gathered during this survey, relating to both listed and unlisted buildings, is entered into the publicly accessible Northern Ireland Buildings Database. A range of listing criteria, which aim to define architectural and historic interest, are used to determine whether or not to list
7912-548: Was founded in 1915 by Danish Peter Lind (he died aged 66 in Surrey in December 1966), headquartered on Watling Street in Cannock . The tower was originally designed to be just 111 metres (364 ft) high; its foundations are sunk down through 53 metres (174 ft) of London clay , and are formed of a concrete raft 27 metres (89 ft) square, 1 metre (3 ft) thick, reinforced with six layers of cables, on top of which sits
8004-503: Was issued on 8 October 1965 for the new tower, which had followed a set of stamps in the previous month for the 25th anniversary of the Battle of Britain . The stamps also featured Nash Terrace. A bomb exploded in the roof of the men's toilets at the Top of the Tower restaurant at 04:30 on 31 October 1971, the blast damaged buildings and cars up to 400 yards (370 m) away. Responsibility for
8096-561: Was made by Tubewrights Ltd of the Kirkby Industrial Estate (established in 1952, after it moved from Newport in Monmouthshire), owned by Stewart's & Lloyd's. The tower was topped out on 15 July 1964, by Conservative MP for Norwich South , Geoffrey Rippon . It was officially opened by the then Prime Minister Harold Wilson on 8 October 1965. The main contractor was Peter Lind & Company . The company
8188-437: Was public outcry at the sudden destruction of the art deco Firestone Tyre Factory ( Wallis, Gilbert and Partners , 1928–29). It was demolished over the August bank holiday weekend by its owners Trafalgar House , who had been told that it was likely to be 'spot-listed' a few days later. In response, the government undertook to review arrangements for listing buildings in order to protect worthy ones from such demolition. After
8280-507: Was replaced in 2024 with Wales-specific heritage legislation. In Wales, the authority for listing is granted to the Welsh Ministers by section 76 of the Historic Environment (Wales) Act 2023, although the listing system is in practice administered by Cadw . There have been several attempts to simplify the heritage planning process for listed buildings in England. As of 2021, few changes had been implemented. The review process
8372-516: Was started in February 2000 by Alan Howarth , then minister at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). The outcome was the paper "Power of Place" in December 2000, followed by the subsequent policy document "The Historic Environment: A Force for Our Future", published by the DCMS and the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions (DTLR) in December 2001. The launch of
8464-696: Was that the existing registers of buildings, parks and gardens, archaeology and battlefields, maritime wrecks, and World Heritage Sites be merged into a single online register that will "explain what is special and why". English Heritage would become directly responsible for identifying historic assets in England and there would be wider consultation with the public and asset owners, and new rights of appeal. There would have been streamlined systems for granting consent for work on historic assets. After several years of consultation with heritage groups, charities, local planning authorities, and English Heritage, in March 2010,
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