ENCLOSURES and OPEN SPACES

Clyro Community and Village Design Statement

The Village

Public Spaces

Clyro lacks public spaces. The "Village Green" is a triangular piece of land by the church lych gate which could contain ten people. There is a recreation ground on the other side of the busy A438. In the nineteenth century the vicarage garden, since partly sold off, was used for village celebrations. Otherwise what recreation and play there was probably took place in the orchards or fields. The Bron was used in Kilvert's time for the first firework display in the locality.

Recent building developments have further squeezed out spaces for public use. Large houses with little space between them are not in keeping with the character of the village; neither do they add to what is visually appropriate for the present or the future.

The Churchyard

The churchyard is at the centre of the village and now provides a sanctuary in a variety of ways. Evidently it is a place for burials and for visitors to graves. Much of the village's heritage is here. It is a place to rest and sit in. It is a haven for birds and mammals. It is rich in wild plants. The place is a village resource that requires conscious guardianship to meet multiple needs.

The Castle Mound

The other ancient site is the Castle Mound. Because of its historic earthworks it is a sensitive area that could nevertheless be of more benefit to residents and visitors alike. There has been a history of neglect here. Houses have been allowed to infringe on its visual impact. Now in more enlightened times it is to be hoped that a management of the site can be worked out and a consciousness generated of its visual and cultural contribution to the village.

Ideal enhancement has taken place at the other castle mound - Court Evan Gwynne.

The Radnorshire Wildlife Trust has created a wildlife sanctuary around this historic site, which could serve as a model.

Car parking

An urgent problem is the lack of a car park. Weddings, funerals, church functions, village hall functions, visitors to the Post Office and Bridge Stores, and visitors to the Kilvert Gallery and to the Baskerville Arms, all require adequate parking, This needs attention.

Designing any development needs to incorporate a consideration not only of the relationship of buildings to each other, but of the spaces around them , and their relation to wildlife, hedges, trees, and landscape.

Properties have various types of enclosures, to keep animals out of gardens, or to keep pets and children in. The most common around the village are wooden picket fencing, hedges, metal railings, and stone walls.

Wooden paling fences

Hedges

Metal railings

Stone walls

Looking south and Buttercup Meadow