Big changes on the way in how our built heritage is protected
WHEN Dr Simon Thurley, chief executive of English Heritage, visits Ripon today he will be in the city at an important time. His talk in Holy Trinity Church this evening is to mark the 40th anniversary of the founding of Ripon Civic Society. And his subject matter – the title of his talk is 'Goodbye Old England - does anyone out there care?' – gives a hint of the wider preoccupations that have been taking his attention over the last few months.
On April 2 the government published its draft Heritage Protection Bill, which gives new powers to both English Heritage and local authorities. It is a wide-ranging Bill, with many good things in it – though not everything is to be welcomed.
The current complex system of designations for legal protection of buildings and other things of historic importance, like ruins, gardens, battlefields and shipwrecks is being changed. Everything will come together in a series of Heritage Registers. The designation of listed buildings for inclusion in the new registers will no longer be the responsibility of the appropriate government department (it's called Culture, Media and Sport at the moment, but may well change before long . . .) but will be given to English Heritage.
When it comes to changes to buildings, there are at present different processes to be followed for Listed Building consent, for consent for work in conservation areas and for work on scheduled Ancient Monuments - and all of this is separate from straightforward planning permission. Under the provisions of the Bill, this will be 'simplified', with all the administration being undertaken by the appropriate local authorities. Local authorities will have to maintain Historic Environment Records, with the aim of making them more easily accessible to the wider public.
One major change is causing anxiety for groups which want to ensure that our built heritage is safeguarded. The Bill puts emphasis on early discussions with owners of listed buildings – or of buildings which might be considered worthy of listing – before applications for consent are made. While this might help avoid later problems, it might also mean that much of the discussion has taken place before the plans get into the public arena for comment.
The other difficulty that can be foreseen is the extra burden that is being placed on local authorities, and especially on their conservation officers, who in most cases are already overstretched. With more cases having to be determined locally, they will have even more work to do. It will be interesting to see if the government does provide more money, as it has promised, for local authorities to carry out the work – and if the money that does come is used solely for that purpose.
And if the conservation officers have to run faster just to stay in the same place, what will happen to the work that they should do to ensure that listed buildings are kept in good order? Local authorities have always been reluctant to serve Repairs Notices; they are not receiving any greater powers in the new Bill, so such cases are likely to slip even further off the radar.
How much of this – if any – will Dr Thurley discuss? Come along to Holy Trinity Church at 7.30 this evening and find out!
Tickets for the talk cost 10 (Ripon Civic Society members 8) from Ripon’s Tourist Information Centre
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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