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T W E N T Y T H I R D E D I T I O N T H E B U I L D I N G C O N S E R VAT I O N D I R E C T O R Y 2 0 1 6 2 5
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PROFESS IONAL SERV I CES
impact’. While it is sometimes helpful for
applicants to offer their own appraisal of
impact, the onus clearly lies with the LPA
(NPPF 129) to make its own assessment of the
significance of any heritage assets affected
and the impact of the proposed changes.
Historic England has found that a
heritage statement which merges the
assessment of significance with the impact
assessment is rarely of much use in the
decision-making process, as the exposition
of the significance can become skewed in
anticipation of justifying the proposed
changes. Arguably, a more effective way
of promoting sustainable development
would be to encourage applicants and
their agents, having first set out the
significance of the asset(s) concerned,
to describe clearly what changes they
propose to fabric, spaces and views as part
of a design and access statement. Such a
statement explains and justifies the design
decisions taken in the preparation of a
development proposal in the round and
not just in relation to heritage interest.
The efficacy of this approach is recognised
in the Planning Practice Guidance (2014):
Design and Access Statements provide
a flexible framework for an applicant
to explain and justify their proposal
with reference to its context. In cases
where both a Design and Access
Statement and an assessment of the
impact of a proposal on a heritage
asset are required, applicants can
avoid unnecessary duplication
and demonstrate how the proposed
design has responded to the historic
environment through including the
necessary heritage assessment as part
of the Design and Access Statement.
(‘Conserving and Enhancing the
Historic Environment’, Paragraph 12)
Better use of design and access statements
would, in the view of Historic England, be the
single biggest improvement in the operation
of development management in relation to
the historic environment. The most helpful
design and access statements incorporate an
assessment and justification of the impact
on an asset’s significance (the ‘heritage
assessment’), but retain a distinct statement
of significance as a precursor, rather than it
being part of the design and access statement.
Having set out what a statement of
significance is not, it is timely to return
to what it is. From Historic England’s
perspective, a statement of significance is the
tangible product of the process of assessing
significance. A statement of significance
very deliberately excludes any sort of impact
assessment or justification for proposed
changes because it should have a long shelf-life
(although it should be reviewed from time to
time), enduring beyond the exigencies of a
particular scheme.
Avanti Architects’ conservation
assessment of St Peter’s Seminary at Cardross
(see Further Information) for the Archdiocese
of Glasgow is an example which emphasises
the ‘neutrality’ of a statement of significance
– its independence from any specific proposed
changes. Similarly, The Faculty Jurisdiction
Rules 2013 explain how a statement of
significance enables the potential impact of
proposals on the significance of a place of
worship to be understood – it does not itself
deal with impact.
At the heart of any statement of
significance is the articulation of why a
historic asset matters to present and future
generations. The four categories of heritage
value set out in Conservation Principles can be
useful as headings:
• evidential value – what potential
for new knowledge is there in
the fabric of the asset?
• historical value – how does the asset or its
features support a narrative of the past?
• aesthetic value – how do people
engage with the asset emotionally?
• communal value – how does the asset
bring people together as a community1?
Not all assets will be valued in all four ways.
Most assets in private ownership are likely
to have relatively little communal value for
example, so there is no benefit in grasping at
straws to say something under each heading.
Nor is it sufficient, however, simply to tick the
box – for historical value, for example. Unless
the parts of the asset and its setting that give
rise to the value are identified, the statement
of significance will be of little help to anyone.
It is essential to consider the setting of an
asset as well as the asset itself when compiling
a statement of significance. What goes on
around a heritage asset can both affect its
significance and the ability of people – today
as much as in the future – to appreciate its
qualities. This dual role of setting needs to be
included in any assessment.
The best statements, therefore, are those
which put their finger not only on what
matters about a place for present and future
generations but also how those values are
manifested in the asset and its setting.
As for length, a statement of significance
can sometimes be distilled onto a single side
of A4 paper but more typically might run
to two or three sides, especially if crucial
features or views are illustrated to assist
the reader. Longer statements can reflect a
lack of precision or indicate the inclusion of
superfluous information. Of course, large
and complex heritage assets are likely to
require longer statements than small and
straightforward ones. Links to web-based
supplementary information such as full
National Heritage List for England entries are
preferable to large blocks of pasted-in text.
The acid test of whether a statement
of significance is fit for purpose is whether
it facilitates conservation – the process of
maintaining and managing change to a
heritage asset in a way that sustains and,
where appropriate, enhances its significance.
And enhancement is where this brief
discussion should conclude. Unlike any
previous English planning regime, the
NPPF explicitly encourages the appropriate
enhancement of heritage assets and not
merely the limitation of harm. Paragraph 137
of the NPPF, for example, invites local
planning authorities to favour proposals
which preserve those elements of the
setting that make a positive contribution
to or better reveal the significance of the
asset. By articulating the value of heritage
assets, statements of significance can
be a springboard for designing change
that provides future generations with a
legacy from both past and present.
Further Information
Avanti Architects, Conservation Assessment:
St Peter’s Seminary, Cardross, 2008
English Heritage, Conservation Principles:
Policies and Guidance for the Sustainable
Management of the Historic Environment,
English Heritage, London, 2008
Department for Communities and
Local Government, ‘Conserving and
Enhancing the Historic Environment’,
Planning Practice Guidance, 2014
ANDREW BROWN BA PhD MCIfA is Historic
England’s planning and conservation
director for south east England.
Notes
1 This is commonly confused with the utility
value of a heritage asset, such as the use of a
historic park for dog-walking which may be
unrelated to the asset’s heritage qualities.
St Peter’s Seminary, Cardross, Argyll (Photo: NORD Architecture, courtesy of NVA)