Heritage Statements are required for all Listed Building Consent applications and for applications affecting designated heritage assets, including conservation areas and historic parks and gardens. The statement should contain sufficient detail to assess the history and character of the asset and fully justify proposed works in terms of their impact on the heritage asset.
The Council will expect the statement to include:
- An outline or description of the asset(s) affected
- An assessment of the asset(s) significance and evolution
- An outline of works proposed and the justification for those works
- Clear and robust statement of the impact on the asset(s)
The level of information and detail included within the statement should always be proportionate to the significance of the asset in question, the scale of development and the level of intervention proposed.
For example, where significance and/or impact are relatively low, as will be the case in many applications, only a few paragraphs of information might be needed, but if significance and impact are high then much more information may be necessary to:
- Understand the significance of the affected assets
- Understand the impact of the proposal on that significance
- Avoid, minimise and mitigate impact in a way that meets the objectives of the NPPF
- Look for opportunities to better reveal or enhance significance
- Justify any harmful impacts in terms of the sustainable development objective of conserving significance and the need for change
- Offset negative impacts on aspects of significance by enhancing others through recording, disseminating and archiving archaeological and historical interest of the important elements of the heritage assets affected
If the scale of development proposed is intensive or likely to impact upon a number assets, the LPA will need to consider whether a more robust Heritage Impact Assessment, Visual Impact Assessment or Environmental Impact Assessment could be required. I certain circumstances where long-term management is required, a Conservation Management Plan might also be requested.
'The level of detail should be proportionate to the assests' importance and no more than is sufficient to understand the potential impact of the proposal on their significance'. NPPF Para 189.