30 C O N T E X T 8 4 : M A Y 2 0 0 4 week before the commencement of work and once the fieldwork stage of the investigation has been completed.The latter should be accompanied by a timetable with dates for report completion and archive deposition.’ • Specification/written scheme of investigation When advice was given on the specification/written scheme of investigation, most local authorities insisted that the document had to be approved by the conservation advisor prior to the start of recording work. ‘It is advisable that the historic buildings analyst forwards a copy of the specification/written scheme of investigation to the (local authority conservation advisor) for validation before submitting costed proposals to the agency commissioning the work.’ ‘The specification/written scheme of investigation shall be agreed with the (local authority conservation advisor) before being implemented.’ ‘This brief has been written following a cursory examination of the site and potential contractors are therefore strongly advised to carry out their own inspection before submitting a quotation. If on first visiting the site or at any time during the recording exercise, it appears that: i) a part or the whole of the site is not amenable to the recording programme outlined above, and/or ii) an alternative approach may be more appropriate or likely to produce more informative results, and/or iii) any features that should be recorded, as having a bearing on the interpretation of the site have been omitted, then it is expected that the historic buildings analyst will contact the (local authority conservation advisor) as a matter of urgency.’ • Disclaimer The local authority conservation advisor can often provide details of suitable organisations to undertake the work, but this disclaimer makes it clear that the responsibility for the project rests entirely with the commissioning body, that is, the developer. ‘It is the responsibility of the applicant, the developer, or any agents acting on their behalf, to choose a suitable historic buildings analyst to conduct the project. Guidance can be given by the (local authority conservation advisor) and addresses of qualified contractors can also be found in the Institute of Historic Building Conservation Yearbook, and the Institute of Field Archaeologists Yearbook and Directory of Members.’ • References The sources were predominantly concerned with professional standards in the assessment and recording of historic buildings9. Only 13 of the 65 briefs (20 per cent) contained references to academic publications. Where the results had to be placed within their wider context, a literature search was often included within the site-specific methodology. • Author All the briefs contained the name, address and phone number of the local authority conservation advisor. An email address and fax number were often included. APPENDIX 2 The following headings were commonly included within the recording briefs to provide guidance on the content and format of the resulting report: Site name; Author; Date; Summary; Site location/description; Planning background; Aims/objectives; Methodology; Sources of information. Other common headings included: • Historical background The report was sometimes expected to contain additional information on the historical, typological and technological development of this class of building. A regression analysis based on historical maps was often required. • Description Materials, methods of construction, architectural description, internal configuration, architectural furniture, decorative finishes, heating, lighting, sanitation, fixtures and fittings, machinery, evidence of phasing and/or demolished structures, and areas of belowground archaeological potential. • Interpretation/analysis A discussion of the results in terms of both the physical and historical evidence. The phasing would be explained, and a process-flow diagram could assist in the interpretation of complex industrial remains. In some cases, the findings had to be placed within their wider vernacular, typological or technological context. • Significance A statement of the local, regional and national importance of the site and its component parts. Recording briefs for pre-consent impact assessments often expected the implications of the development proposal to be discussed in terms of both the upstanding fabric and buried archaeological remains. • Recommendations for future work (if appropriate) • Conclusions • References/bibliography • Figures The report should include copies of any historical maps, location plan, the measured survey and a representative sample of the photographs including colour prints. • Specialist reports If requested, the detailed results arising from plaster, paint, wallpaper, mortar and/or tree ring analysis. • Archive contents/location In addition to listing the contents of the archive, a copy of the photographic register was often required. • Summary sheet For one authority, a completed summary sheet would be used to enter the results on the Sites and Monuments Record. In some cases, copies of the list description, planning/ listed building application, local authority brief and specification/written scheme of investigation had to be included as appendices to the main report. This information would be helpful for those who wished to use the results for the long-term management of the site or for future research purposes.
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