0ver 50 years of Campaigning
When there were plans to change the landscape of the Crammer, the people of Devizes were quick thinking and staged a protest which persuaded the council to change its mind and the Trust for Devizes was born. Since then the Trust has been involved in ensuring that the heritage, which is at the very core of our fine market town, is not destroyed by careless and thoughtless development.
Saved from demolition
We have enjoyed a number of very significant successes over the years. We saved St John’s Alley, a fine terrace of Tudor buildings, from being demolished and ensured it was fully restored. We ensure that the Great Porch House was not demolished by the New Park Street by-pass and we saved Shanes Castle from being replaced by a roundabout. We have also been involved in issues such as car parking, air pollution and traffic which we feel are important to our town.
These days, with constantly increasing pressure to build more homes, the Trust is more active than ever in ensuring that this is not achieved at the cost of destroying our historic buildings and the very ambience that attracts people to live in Devizes
Guardians of our buildings
But it is not only those wishing to build new homes that threaten our heritage: businesses can be cavalier about the premises they occupy, desiring only to make them more convenient or efficient to their business, rather than act as guardians of buildings, many of which are medieval in origin.
On the other hand, Devizes needs a thriving commercial sector and therefore a balance has to be struck between the reasonable demands of a modern business and the ancient buildings entrusted to our generation. This is something we always aim to do. We also get involved in issues such as car parking, air pollution and traffic which we feel are important to our town.”