C O N T E X T 1 0 7 : N O V E M B E R 2 0 0 8 27 GEOFF DAWE Value for our investment Recent guidance notes, policy documents and case studies show how investment in the historic environment can benefit the local area and society in general. Expenditure on the historic environment in England is the responsibility of many different organisations and individuals. According to a recent NHTG report, the value of work on pre-1919 buildings in England is about £5 billion pa1. First and foremost it is an activity undertaken by private organisations and individuals. In addition, third sector organisations are directly or indirectly responsible for the maintenance of many historic buildings. Spending by public bodies, either in dedicated heritage budgets, or as part of programmes with wider ambitions, plays an important role in maintaining the part of the historic environment that other forms of funding do not reach. There are benefits to society beyond those accruing to the individuals or organisations that undertake the expenditure or activity. This external benefit can come in various forms. It might be directly to do with the conservation of a feature of historic importance that is valued even by those who do not visit now, and might be valued by future generations. There are benefits of expenditure of more immediate value to local people, for example in terms of property values, but responsibility for that expenditure lies with one individual or one organisation. Heritage assets might also form an important part of the economic and social regeneration of an area. The existence of external benefits implies that there is potentially an under-investment in heritage assets by private individuals and organisations because they do not gain all the benefits of such investment. In practice there is a large amount of private sector investment in heritage assets. The role of public sector intervention, whether in the form of regulation or expenditure, is concentrated in places where that private incentive is insufficient. In 2005 English Heritage published a policy note on regeneration and the historic environment2. This describes a number of small- and large-scale case studies where expenditure on the historic environment contributed to the regeneration of local businesses and inward migration. Recent documents describing the regenerationpotential of different types of heritage expenditure includeHeritage Lottery Fund Conservation Area Partnership Schemes: review of funded projects (HLF 2007), Regeneration through Heritage: understanding the development potential of historic European arsenals (SHARP Europe, 2007), and Regeneration in Historic Coastal Towns (English Heritage 2007). The practical toolkit described in HeritageWorks: the use of historic buildings (RICS, BPF, English Heritage and Drivers Jonas, 2006) provides a step-by-step guide to developers and others. The Heritage Dividend methodology builds on previous experience with measuring the impact of heritage expenditure on regeneration in cities, towns and village across England.The methodology describes various methods of capturing the range of positive (and negative) spin-offs3. The methodology also takes into account the first evaluations of theTownscape Heritage Initiative (THI) and general guidance concerning assessment of regeneration type projects, for example the ‘Three Rs Guide’4, and the Additionality Guide5. As well as increasing the scope of evaluation of heritage expenditure, the methodology recognises that projects with small budgets would not justify a fullscale assessment. No one-size-fits-all evaluation. The cultural value framework is concerned with impacts arising from the quantity and quality of heritage work. These include wider benefits such as learning, well-being, attitudes and impact on local communities covering social and economic outcomes. Data are collected through surveys of local residents, visitors, project participants and managers. Outputs of projects and programmes are also recorded6. Lake District and Yorkshire Dales Two recent research projects reported on the impact of expenditure on traditional farm buildings in the Lake District7 and Yorkshire Dales8 National Parks using the heritage dividend methodology. Topics covered included employment and economic impacts on local people and businesses, support for craft skills, and impact on landscapes. The project found that every pound of repair work resulted in total output of £2.49 (Lake District). Between two thirds (Lake District) and three quarters (Yorkshire Dales) of the buildings receiving grant were likely to become derelict without the grant, and the rest repaired to a lower standard. The Townscape Heritage Initiative (THI) is a major Heritage Lottery Fund programme designed to address the under-use of buildings and the erosion of heritage Suffolk Street in the Ropewalks area of Liverpool, where funding under the Heritage Lottery Fund’s Townscape Heritage Initiative, combined with other sources of funding, has restored heritage buildings and formed the basis of regeneration in this area. The evaluation concluded that the Ropewalks area was undergoing dramatic transformation, with positive signs of social changes and a drop in concern about violent crime and theft. (Photo: Heritage Lottery Fund) References 1 Traditional Building Craft Skills: reassessing the need, addressing the issues: England Review 2008 (National Heritage Training Group, 2008) 2 Regeneration and the Historic Environment (English Heritage, 2005) 3 The Heritage Dividend Methodology: measuring the impact of heritage projects (English Heritage, 2006) 4 Assessing the Impacts of Spatial Intervention: the ‘three Rs’ guidance (ODPM, 2004) 5 Additionality Guide: a standard approach to assessing the additional impact of projects (English Partnerships, 2004) 6 Kate Clark and Gareth Maeer, ‘The Cultural Value of Heritage: evidence from the Heritage Lottery Fund’ (Cultural Trends,Volume 17, Number 1, March 2008) 7 BuildingValue: public benefits of historic farm building repair in the Lake District (English Heritage, DEFRA, 2005) 8 BuildingValue: public benefits of historic farm building repair and dry stone wall repairs in the Yorkshire Dales National Park (English Heritage, DEFRA, 2007) 9 Evaluating the Townscape Heritage Initiative: summary findings (Heritage Lottery Fund and Oxford Brookes University, 2008)
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