IT’S a crying shame that a Victorian shopfront in Bradford city centre is being lost forever to be replaced by the modern frontage of a new phone shop.

And it is equally a crying shame that Bradford Council appears to be relaxed about that loss, even to the point of crediting the replacement as improving the look of the area as the new design has internal, rather than external, security shutters.

It appears that the old shopfront in Ivegate, which first belonged to Arensberg’s jewellers and dated back to 1860, had no form of protection, despite it being in the city centre conservation area as the building itself is not listed.

That the developer has no planning permission yet to replace the shopfront also does not seem to greatly trouble the Council, which says its officers have advised him of the situation and will formally write to confirm the same.

An area’s architectural heritage can be an intrinsic part of its wider appeal and, therefore, prosperity.

Many Bradfordians of a certain age still bemoan the loss of so much of the city’s Victorian heritage during the huge redevelopment programme carried out in the 1960s.

Yes, the loss of a single shopfront will not, on its own, make a huge difference but lessons from past mistakes surely should be learned and a guiding principle be put in place to preserve the city’s heritage whenever possible.

Ivegate’s historic roots have some likening it to the famous Shambles in York. It seems an apt word for what is going on there.