Beehive Business Centre, off Daltongate, Ulverston, Cumbria: Heritage Assessment

Prior to the submission of a planning application for the creation of a new business centre as an adjunct to a ‘Blue Light Hub’, off Daltongate, Ulverston, Cumbria, Greenlane Archaeology was commissioned to carry out a heritage assessment of the site. The site is adjacent to the A590 to the west side of Ulverston. Information contained in the Historic Environment Record revealed 18 sites of archaeological interest within a study area of 500m around the site, ranging in date from the Neolithic to post-medieval periods. The earliest sites mainly comprise stray finds of axes and similar, and while most of these are poorly located some were found relatively close to the site, including a Bronze Age cremation. Finds of Roman date are also essentially just stray finds and the nature of any Roman occupation in the area is poorly understood. The focus of the medieval settlement was some distance to the east, although a possible wayside cross is recorded nearby, and maps of the area show that the site itself has been open fields since at least the mid-19th century.

An earlier geophysical survey of part of the site revealed a number of anomalies of potential archaeological interest but nothing of significance was discovered through targeted trenching. A site visit revealed that the land has been subject to general agricultural improvement but is otherwise relatively undisturbed. Taking into account evidence from the wider area, it was considered that there was some potential for remains of archaeological interest to be present.

The full report will be made available on the Archaeology Data Service website.