Memorandum submitted by the Yorkshire
Historic Environment Forum (YHEF)
The YHEF was formed in 2002 to provide a single
voice in the region for all those concerned with the current and
future management of the historic environment. Its area of interest
is the same as the Government Office area of Yorkshire and the
Humber, and includes North Yorkshire and York, West Yorkshire,
South Yorkshire, East Yorkshire and Hull, and northern Lincolnshire
(encompassing the two unitary authorities of North Lincolnshire
and North East Lincolnshire). It is one of nine regional Historic
Environment Fora. Its key objectives are:
— To promote understanding and appreciation
of the historic environment, and its positive role in the regeneration
and renaissance of Yorkshire region.
— To help market the historic environment
to visitors to the region.
— To develop integrated policies relating
to the historic environment of the region.
— To act as a single focus for consultation
on the future of the historic environment in Yorkshire.
— To share information on the plans
of individual organisations and to work in partnership together
and with others.
— To share best practice in the management
of the historic environment, including the need to develop skills
and continuity in conservation and craftsmanship, and the need
to build capacity and engage communities in such management.
— To help English Heritage in its role
as lead body advising government and local government on the historic
environment in Yorkshire.
Collectively, its priorities are to:
— widen public enjoyment and understanding
of the historic environment;;
— conserve the components of the historic
environment and encourage the creative use of historic places
in the Yorkshire of tomorrow;
— unlock the potential of local places;
— ensure that the formal planning systems
in the region properly identify, recognise, value and protect
the region's historic environment;
— modernise sector skills and working
culture; and
— explain the importance of, and represent
the needs of, the historic environment to decision-makers and
action-takers.
For this Select Committee inquiry, the key messages
from the YHEF are:
— Regional fora have a strong role
to play in supporting the work of English Heritage as lead body
in the sector.
— Regional fora are able to make significant
impacts on regional policy and funding for the sector.
— There is growing recognition of the
value of the historic environment as a catalyst for regeneration
through the sustainable re-use of existing assets, the contribution
it makes to quality of place and the direct benefits it brings
in terms of tourism (worth £4 billion GDP in Yorkshire).
— Lack of resources is having an impact
on the historic environment, in particular on the shortage of
funding to assist private owners of historic places, the deteriorating
condition of so many of our historic places of worship and the
shortage of expert conservation staff in local authorities.
Member organisations represented on the YHEF,
listed on the Appendix below, may offer separate observations
to the Select Committee without prejudice to the collective comments
here.
1. What the Department for Culture, Media
and Sport should identify as priorities in the forthcoming Heritage
White Paper.
YHEF are aware that English Heritage's response
on this heading will be comprehensive, and have no specific or
additional observations.
2. The remit and effectiveness of DCMS, English
Heritage and other relevant organisations in representing heritage
interests inside and outside Government
The development of nine regional Historic Environment
Fora has been one way in which English Heritage has improved the
representation of sectoral interests at regional level. The YHEF
membership includes a wide range of heritage interests both inside
and outside Government and adds an important extra dimension to
the work and activities of individual bodies.
Each year since 2002 the Yorkshire Historic
Environment Forum has published "Heritage Counts: The State
of Yorkshire's Historic Environment" report. The document
lists Yorkshire's historic environment assets, monitors the pressures
they are under, the resources required to manage them, and the
many opportunities they present to support the economic and social
wellbeing of the region. In 2005, the fourth State of the Historic
Environment report for Yorkshire was published; a copy is enclosed
for reference. Trends discernible over this relatively short timescale
indicate that:
— Development pressure in Yorkshire
is particularly strong. In many cases poor decisions and unregulated
development are degrading the quality of the historic environment—designated
and undesignated—and eroding its significance to communities
and visitors.
— Up to a third of planning applications
have a conservation element, yet local authorities employ on average
fewer than two specialist conservation officers.
— Despite good progress with buildings
on English Heritage's Buildings at Risk Register for Yorkshire,
grade I and II* buildings continue to be added to the Register,
reflecting the lack of assistance available to owners of historic
places. Only four out of every 10 places of worship applications
can be helped.
The sector collectively has been swift to act
in response to the findings of the 2002 report. In Yorkshire,
we can demonstrate that:
— We have a clear understanding of
the funding priorities for the sector and can demonstrate that
investment in historic infrastructure is cost effective, sustainable
and in line with the needs of local communities.
— We know which communities and sectors
of societies are excluded from participation in the historic environment
and are actively addressing this issue through physical works
and a broad spectrum of outreach initiatives.
— We have a better understanding of
the threats facing the region's historic designed landscapes.
Through pilot work with English Heritage and the Yorkshire Gardens
Trust, we know that almost two thirds of Yorkshire's designed
landscapes are at risk, whilst a national survey has indicated
that Yorkshire has suffered some of the highest rates of loss
of pre-1919 parkland in England.
— We understand the needs of the region's
voluntary sector better, and have acted to strengthen their engagement
with the regional agenda.
— We are tackling the disproportionately
high number of Buildings at Risk with more success than any other
English region.
The data from Heritage Counts is now helping
decision-makers at a regional level bring the historic environment
into their thinking. For example, its indicator set is helping
the Regional Assembly monitor change in the built as well as the
natural environment through its annual review Progress in the
Region, where heritage now shares a chapter and some high level
indicators with the natural environment sector. Progress in the
Region is widely used to support policy formation and delivery
both within regional and local government and in the commercial
sector. Heritage Counts data is also enabling English Heritage
to support Government Office for Yorkshire and the Humber in advising
on the cultural components of Local Area Agreements.
3. The balance between heritage and development
needs in planning policy
Yorkshire is a living, exciting, beautiful place
which is constantly changing. If Yorkshire's historic environment
is to play its proper part in the future of Yorkshire, then it
is essential that change is embraced in a way that enhances that
which is most valued by the people of Yorkshire.
The Yorkshire Historic Environment Forum has,
with Yorkshire Culture (the regional Cultural Consortium) and
the Yorkshire and Humber Assembly, commissioned a first-of-its-kind
study to identify the way in which the historic environment should
be enhanced, protected and harnessed to promote economic and social
wellbeing through the Regional Spatial Strategy (RSS). The work
identified what was regionally significant in Yorkshire's historic
environment, and examined appropriate policy responses.
As a direct result, the draft RSS contains high-level
policies which recognise the importance of the historic environment
to Yorkshire's identity and future development, a major step forward
in regional spatial planning, and a direct result of partnership
working through the Forum.
4. Access to heritage and the position of
heritage as a cultural asset in the community
The member bodies of the YHEF own manage or
maintain many of the cultural assets in the region which attract
visitors, offer a valuable educational resource and provide a
strong sense of place to those living and working in Yorkshire.
Visits to museums, art galleries, historic properties, gardens,
heritage railways, places of worship and heritage centres accounted
for over half of all visits to the region in 2004 (VisitBritain
"Visitor Attraction Trends in England 2004", August
2005). To this should be added the landscapes of the Yorkshire
Dales National Park, the North York Moors National Park, part
of the Peak National Park, and the Areas of Outstanding Natural
Beauty (Howardian Hills and Nidderdale). The Countryside Right
of Way Act resulted in over 60% of the Yorkshire Dales National
Park being openly accessible.
Many organisations within the sector in the
region are actively involved with schools, lifelong learning and
outreach work. The 67 Civic Societies in the region promote access
to the cultural environment through their core educational activities
and through their participation in Heritage Open Days, which last
year saw Leeds coming second only to London in the number of properties
open to the public. English Heritage properties have witnessed
a 7% increase in school and education visits each year since 2003,
and its Outreach programme in the region has involved people and
communities not traditionally engaged with the historic environment
in exciting and inspiring ways—a project in Bradford, for
example, used the rich legacy of prehistoric rock art on Ilkley
Moor as a point of departure for an arts-based project for disaffected
young people in the city. Furthermore, church social action in
the region benefits 150,000 people, involves over 50,000 volunteers
and 3,000 staff, and worth in the region of £55-£75
million per annum to the region (Churches Regional Commission,
Angels and Advocates, 2002). The Yorkshire Gardens Trust is also
working with Refugee Action in Leeds to arrange visits for families
to historic gardens.
Participation, for the historic environment
sector, also means helping engage communities in decisions about
their local environment and what it means to them in cultural
terms. Heritage Counts 2003 reported that over half of people
questioned in Bradford agreed that "caring for neglected
and derelict buildings" was the biggest issue facing their
local area, followed by "too many boarded-up, unused buildings"
(52%) and "the condition of gardens and parks" (40%).
English Heritage has, with the support of YHEF members, funded
a ground-breaking conference to explore heritage-led community
planning, informed by the Castleford Heritage Group, who have
placed what they hold to be of local cultural significance at
the heart of the town's regeneration plans. The conference findings
will be translated into a "toolkit", to help other communities,
like those in Bradford, to place the environmental and cultural
significance of their locale firmly at the heart of future proposals
for change, growth or regeneration.
5. Funding, with particular reference to the
adequacy of the budget for English Heritage and for museums and
galleries, the impact of the London 2012 Olympics on Lottery funding
for heritage projects, and forthcoming decisions on the sharing
of funds from Lottery sources between good causes
Agencies will make individual responses on their
own funding position
The YHEF Investment Strategy
The YHEF published "Investing in Yorkshire's
Heritage: an Investment Strategy for the historic environment
sector in Yorkshire and the Humber" in June 2005. The Strategy
recognises that in fact, there are many funding opportunities
for the sector; the issue is influencing where available funds
are spent and identifying where the pressure points are.
The Investment Strategy, in matching high-level
DCMS objectives and regional needs and opportunities in the sector,
has been an effective tool in accessing funding opportunities.
Yorkshire Forward is considering targetted investment into some
of the regionally-significant rural heritage assets in the Strategy
over the next three years, having been assured by the collective
approach the Sector has taken in drawing up its priorities and
action plan. Partnerships and mechanisms to meet projects outside
Yorkshire Forward's remit are being developed.
Key funding challenges: privately-owned historic
assets
The Strategy will also assist the sector in
addressing funding pinch points. For example, English Heritage
is one of very few agencies able to provide meaningful funding
for non-economic repairs in the historic environment; it is also
one of few bodies able to offer assistance to the repair and maintenance
of privately-owned historic assets, where demand is very high.
For example, 78 of the region's grade I or II* Buildings at Risk
are privately owned (almost 70% of the regional Register total).
Figures are approximate, but the repair bill for these buildings
alone may be in the region of £7.5 million. The English Heritage
grant requirement is just over £1 million, twice the annual
regional grant available.
Key funding challenges: places of worship
Demand is also far outstripping resources for
the English Heritage and Heritage Lottery Fund joint Repair Grants
for Places of Worship Scheme, the primary source of funding for
urgent repairs to places of worship, of which there are over 1,000
in the region. This scheme has disbursed approximately £24
million over the 1994-2004 period, however, in 2003 the Church
of England in Yorkshire predicted that £40 million was needed
until 2008 for repairs alone—costs for modest schemes to
extend the use of churches for community purposes would add considerably
to this figure.
Key funding challenges: the rural historic environment
The sector also recognises the significant opportunity
that the new Environmental Stewardship Scheme (ES) presents for
the rural historic environment. In highly agricultural parts of
the region, up to 60% of nationally important archaeological sites
are at risk, mainly from farming operations, but also from neglect.
Furthermore, iconic landscapes and features (for example the large-scale
ritual landscape associated with the Great Wolds Valley in East
Yorkshire, and the Yorkshire Dales dry stone barns and walls),
need significant, long-term investment and stewardship to secure
their protection and ongoing contribution to local identity and
attractiveness for visitors and investors alike.
There are two challenges in harnessing the potential
of the ES scheme to the needs of the historic environment: the
first will be to encourage landowners and managers to choose options
within their agreement which tackle the needs of historic environment
assets on their land. To help in this, a partnership of regional
agencies has helped develop the Targeting Statements for the ES
scheme; these highlight which historic environment assets in various
geographic areas should be priorities for funding, and what the
funding response might be. If the predicted 70% take-up materialises
after 10 years, Yorkshire should experience a nine fold increase
in ES schemes operating in the region, potentially benefiting
a far greater number of designated and non-designated cultural
heritage assets in the rural environment than ever.
The second challenge is to ensure there is sufficient
advice and expertise available to ensure that the historic environment
receives equal billing to other environmental concerns when drawing
up and funding schemes: Yorkshire's Heritage Counts 2005 highlighted
an under-provision in the advice on cultural heritage available
to landowners and managers compared to the provision of advice
from the natural environment sector. English Heritage and North
Yorkshire County Council have made funding available to support
additional advisory posts, but this can only go so far to redress
this imbalance.
The London 2012 Olympics
The heritage sector is keen to support the cultural
aims and objectives associated with the London 2012 Olympics.
The London 2012 games present an opportunity to showcase what
is culturally significant about Britain. The sector in Yorkshire
will engage through Yorkshire Culture, a member of the YHEF.
6. What the roles and responsibilities should
be for English Heritage, the HLF, local authorities, museums and
galleries, charitable and other non-Governmental organisations
in maintaining the nation's heritage
Whilst it is for the individual organisations
to comment on their own roles and responsibilities in response
to this question, there is a clear benefit to bringing together
partners in the sector to assist in maintaining the heritage,
as outlined in the examples given throughout this response.
7. Whether there is an adequate supply of
professionals with conservation skills; the priority placed by
planning authorities on conservation; and means of making conservation
expertise more accessible to planning officers, councillors and
the general public
Local authorities
Local authorities are essential to the protection
and management of the historic environment. A national survey
in 2002 revealed that on average, local authorities employed 2.1
full-time equivalent (FTE) specialist building conservation staff.
The Yorkshire complement is currently just above this level, however,
there are marked variations which suggest that some local authorities
have difficulty in prioritising funding for full-time equivalent
specialist posts: only one North Yorkshire authority maintains
over 2.0 FTE posts for example. Respondents to Heritage Counts
data collection have mentioned that expertise is often brought
in to complete initiatives like Buildings at Risk registers; this
temporarily boosts staff figures and achieves a specific aim,
but provides no long-term support or continuity for the management
of the historic environment. In the same way, the region's nine
Historic Environment Records facilities have more staff than two
years ago, but many are on short-term contracts. YHEF members
are also concerned about adequate provision of staff to designate
historic assets in the future, and for staff to provide advice
on specialist conservation within the Environmental Stewardship
scheme, for example, historic designed landscapes.
Furthermore, the data shows that some Yorkshire
local authorities struggle to fund heritage-supporting activities
other than FTE complement. Over half the region's grade II buildings
are yet to be assessed in the context of an "at risk"
strategy, 60% of the region's conservation areas do not have a
character appraisal, seven authorities had no historic environment
grants budget for the second year running in 2005, and only half
have an Historic Environment Champion to date.
The Academy for Sustainable Communities
The YHEF recognise the opportunity presented
by the establishment of the Academy for Sustainable Communities
in Leeds, particularly with regard to training in historic environment
management, conservation-led regeneration, community planning,
public realm design, traditional construction skills and training
for engineers, elected members and other key professions. Connections
with the sector are planned, to support English Heritage's engagement
with the Academy at a national level.
Other sector skills shortages
The recent study by the National Heritage Training
Group and CITB ConstructionSkills revealed a shortage of traditional
construction crafts practitioners across England. Yorkshire requires
a 6% increase in the number of such individuals, higher than the
4% rise required nationally. The YHEF will be assisting English
Heritage in taking forward a Skills Action Plan to address this
in 2006.
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