Braintree listed, thatched cottage to be restored after fire

20 June 2023

Piers MylerLocal Democracy Reporting Service

News image — The Grade II listed thatched cottage was devastated by a fire last year

Essex County Fire and Rescue Service Scene of the blaze in June 2019, when a Grade II listed thatched cottage in Cressing Road, Braintree, was devastated by a fire — The Grade II listed thatched cottage was devastated by a fire last year

A cottage dating from the 17th Century that was devastated by fire last year is due to be rebuilt, under new plans.

The Grade II listed thatched house in Braintree, Essex, was partially destroyed by a fire that ripped through the roof in June 2022.

Crews from 15 fire stations were called to tackle the blaze in Cressing Road, but no-one was hurt.

Plans submitted to Braintree District Council propose fully rebuilding the property in a like-for-like manner.

The house - which had suffered a previous fire in the 1970s - will be re-thatched.

A statement in the planning application to the council said: "The appearance of the property will be largely unaltered from the property prior to the fire.

"The key change will be to reinstate all windows without leaded lights [a type of leaded glass]. This will be a return to how the windows used to be before the modern leaded lights were fitted and the change is deemed to be more appropriate than then leaded lights.

"Otherwise the external appearance will be unaltered."