Conservation Principles, Policies and Guidance - English Heritage

ASSESSING HERITAGE SIGNIFICANCE
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80 Value-based judgements about elements of the historic environment have
implications both for places and for everyone with an interest in them.
Such judgements provide the basis for decisions about whether, or to what
extent, a place should be conserved, rather than remade or replaced.
Designation forms the basis of the statutory system of heritage protection.
It may have important financial and other consequences for owners, while
the refusal to designate may mean the loss of a place to which some people
attached considerable significance. Consistency of judgement is therefore
crucial to the public acceptability and fairness of the process. Detailed criteria
for statutory designation, periodically updated, 7 and a methodical articulation
of how a particular place does or does not meet such criteria, make a major
contribution to achieving that consistency.
81 The fact that a place does not meet current criteria for formal designation
does not negate the values it may have to particular communities. Such values
should be taken into account in making decisions about its future through the
spatial planning system, 8 or incentive schemes like Environmental Stewardship.
Articulate the significance of the place
82 A ‘statement of significance’ of a place should be a summary of the cultural
and natural heritage values currently attached to it and how they inter-relate,
which distils the particular character of the place. It should explain the relative
importance of the heritage values of the place (where appropriate, by reference
to criteria for statutory designation), how they relate to its physical fabric, the
extent of any uncertainty about its values (particularly in relation to potential
for hidden or buried elements), and identify any tensions between potentially
conflicting values. So far as possible, it should be agreed by all who have an
interest in the place. The result should guide all decisions about material
change to a significant place.
83 Assessments in support of a decision that a place passes the threshold for
statutory designation for a particular value normally stand the test of time.
However, the values of a place tend to extend beyond those which justify
designation, and to grow in strength and complexity as time passes (Principle
3.3). A statement of significance is an informed and inclusive judgement made
on a particular set of data, applying prevailing perceptions of value, primarily
to inform the management of a significant place. The statement will therefore
need review in the light of new information, and periodically to reflect evolving
perceptions of value (Principle 3.4).
7 Communities and Local Government Circular 01/2007, Revision to principles of selection for listing buildings complemented
by detailed Selection Guides for particular building types produced by English Heritage, are a major step towards achieving
this objective for listed buildings.
8 In line with the European Landscape Convention, Articles 5, 6.