‘Potential to damage Roman remains’ in area where developers want to build 80 homes

Archaeologists have said there is “potential for buried remains relating to the Roman period” in an area of ​​Leicestershire where developers want to build up to 80 houses. Applicant Rosconn Group submitted proposals for land on the eastern side of Sapcote village, north of Leicester Road.

However, archaeologists have written to Blaby District Council’s planning department to say the site is in an area of ​​archaeological interest. They added that they welcomed the claimant’s commissioning of an archaeological and heritage survey of the area in question, which would assess the nature, extent and significance of the heritage asset, but said they believed “this undermines the site’s archaeological potential for buried remains. relating to the Roman period”.

The team said that “a Roman villa, first noted in 1770 with the discovery of a tessellated pavement and building foundations, is recorded less than 200 meters southeast of the site,” and “other structural remains were discovered in the 20th century. along with various finds including pottery, coins and tiles in the area of ​​the former Calver Hill Quarry, north of the quarry, a bathroom, a tesserae workshop and two bowl kilns were also recorded’.

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“Given the evidence in the surrounding area, the site is considered to have good potential for the presence of archaeological remains related to Roman activity, including settlement and occupation,” they added and said that although the developer’s survey had not identified any positive results . evidence for archaeological activity, nor had he established their lack.

Archaeologists said they were particularly interested in what they called “a strong magnetic anomaly identified in the southeast area of ​​the site that may represent the remains of an oven, kiln or furnace.” They said that although a survey had been carried out, it would not pick up all the archaeological finds, including prehistoric, Anglo-Saxon remains and human burials.

Further investigation would be needed to establish the date and nature of any remains that might be found, they added, and recommended that a trench trial program – an assessment method used to estimate the archaeological potential of a site – be performed.

The archaeological team said the preservation of archaeological remains was a “material consideration” when making a decision on planning applications and said the proposed housing development included activities which “may destroy any buried archaeological remains that are present”.

They made a recommendation, based on the possibility that “archaeological remains may be adversely affected by this proposal”, that the applicant complete an archaeological impact assessment before making any decision on the application. This would involve “a field assessment, by appropriate techniques, including trial trenches, if identified as necessary in the assessment, to identify and locate any significant archaeological remains and to propose appropriate treatment to avoid or minimize damage of development”, they said. “To achieve this, more design, civil engineering or archaeological work may be required.”

The site in question comprises two agricultural plots with direct access from Leicester Road. Sapcote is to the east of the proposed development and to the north is a holiday home, farm buildings and a granite quarry. A single farm with farm buildings and the former Sapcote Quarry are to the east and Leicester Road is on the south side.

The developer said the proposed homes would be 25% “affordable” housing. The site would include new planting, including trees and hedges to the south and east. It would also include additional walkways through the site and into the village, with public open space, landscaping and a play area, the developer said.

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