C O N T E X T 1 3 3 : M A R C H 2 0 1 4 23 VALUING HERITAGE societies, building professionals and local institutions. The partnership has created an invaluable local network, allowing the various groups and city council to work together towards shared values and goals. Its first job was to establish these shared values and goals. With this in mind the city council decided to produce a heritage action plan in conjunction with the heritage partnership. This gave the city council an opportunity to set out its stall. So in 2011 the first heritage action plan was produced, outlining the value to Leicester of its heritage, a work programme which set out the priorities for the next 12 months, and a long-term rolling programme. The values identified can be broadly categorised as emotional, economic and social. These general values tend to be well rehearsed within the heritage profession but are often not articulated in a local context. The emotional value is what attracts people to the historic environment, and not just those of us who have a specific interest. When people choose places to live, work and visit, they tend to head towards the most attractive recognisable environment. This sense of the familiar gives us a sense of safety or belonging. It enhances quality of life, making people happy, more confident and more productive.There is also a sense of nostalgia, particularly in times of economic strife, which should not be dismissed; the yearning for a time when things were better and simpler, and the tangible relics of this past.There is an argument that recession is the best thing that can happen to the historic environment. That brings us to the economic value. The historic environment can be a catalyst for regeneration and investment.The most expensive property, and that which best holds its value, tends to be historic buildings or areas. Is this because of that sense of permanence and sense of place the historic environment gives us? It is something often used by business. Establishing yourself in a historic area can give customers confidence in the longevity of the business. How often do people advertise themselves with ‘established 1835’ or some other far-off date? And the historic environment provides work: buildings need repairing and adapting, giving work to skilled craftsmen and professional advisors alike. The social value of the historic environment looks towards building strong communities, not just in the traditional geographical sense, but in new communities built around shared interests and causes. Events and recreation within the historic environment encourage engagement not only with history but with other participants. As with businesses, community groups take on historic buildings, again to achieve a sense of belonging and level of permanence. These values give us a clear direction when working with the heritage partnership to set out the council’s work programme and priorities. All of the tasks and projects identified can be linked back to these values. This strategic approach with established core values has been instrumental in helping Leicester City Council achieve so much within the historic environment. Giving funders confidence that there is a well-researched and well supported need for projects has helped in gaining Heritage Lottery Funding for a townscape heritage initiative in and around the Greyfriars area. Being able to demonstrate achievement and delivery through the plan has also played a part in getting ERDF funding for the restoration and conversion to work units of Friars Mill, a fire-damaged listed 18th century hosiery mill, which will form the centrepiece of a major regeneration area. The ability to measure achievements against these shared values gives confidence to our partners and stakeholders that the city council does care about the things they care about and is doing something to protect them. It increases our ability to work together in the long term, helping more people engage with and understand their heritage. It gives the city council the opportunity to learn from others what they value, making Leicester a happier and nicer place to be. The Leicester City Council Heritage Action Plan can be found on the Leicester City Council website at www.leicester.gov.uk/ your-council-services/ep/ planning/conservation/ heritage-action-plan/ Jenny Timothy is senior building conservation officer at Leicester City Council. NewWalk and the NewWalk Museum Belgrave Hall and Gardens
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