26 C O N T E X T 1 3 3 : M A R C H 2 0 1 4 VALUING HERITAGE DUNCAN MELVILLE Heritage’s economic contribution The favourite activity of overseas visitors is shopping, but visiting historic buildings is not far behind. Recent research highlights the economic contribution of heritage. Statisticians use a system known as the standard industrial classification to divide the economy into different sectors producing different goods and services, for example the manufacture of motor vehicles or insurance services. This does not identify heritage as a separate sector in statistical terms. In 2012, in the one recognisable purely heritage sector, the operation of historic sites and buildings, there were 10,500 jobs in England and 12,400 in the UK overall1.We need to go beyond the standard economic statistics from the Office for National Statistics to ascertain the economic contribution of heritage in the UK. Recent research by the consultancy Oxford Economics considers the contribution of heritage across the economy more widely2. Oxford Economics estimated that there were 134,000 jobs in built heritage tourism (visiting historic buildings) in UK in 2011.This estimate rises to 253,000 jobs when natural heritage tourism, such as visits to parks and gardens, is included. In terms of economic output or GDP, Oxford Economics estimates that built heritage tourism contributed £5.1 billion, and £9.6 billion including natural heritage, in the UK in 2011. Oxford Economics also estimated the total economic impacts of heritage tourism, including indirect and induced effects. Indirect effects are generated by a sector’s purchases from other industries through the supply chain. Induced effects are generated by the spending of an industry’s workers elsewhere in the economy. Oxford Economics’ estimates of the total economic impacts of heritage tourism in the UK in 2011, including the direct, indirect and induced impacts were 393,000 jobs and £14 billion of economic output in built heritage tourism; and 742,000 jobs and £26.4 billion of economic output when natural heritage tourism is included. Another way to judge the economic contribution of heritage is to consider the economic activity that occurs in historic buildings. Another piece of research by Oxford Economics3 has estimated that in 2011 there were 138,000 UK businesses located in listed buildings. These accounted for £47 billion of economic output and 1.4 million jobs. This represented 3.5 per cent of UK economic output and five per cent of all UK employment in 2011. The historic built environment is also an important source of demand for the construction sector through the repair and maintenance essential for preservation. The consultant Ecorys has estimated that in 2010 there were around 5.4 million historic buildings in England. Ecorys estimated that repair and maintenance on this stock of historic buildings supported around 180,000 jobs and generated economic output (GDP) of around £4.1 billion directly in the construction sector in 20104. Adding in the indirect and induced impacts (as for heritage tourism) gives estimates of the total economic impacts of heritage-related construction of around 490,000 jobs and £11.0 billion of economic output in England. Part of the benefit of economic growth is a high standard of living, enabling individuals to enjoy a range of pursuits. Heritage is part of this enjoyment economy. In 2012 there were 57.9 million visits to historic properties in England5, including historic houses (20.8 million visits), gardens (9.2 million visits), places of worship (8.4 million visits), and castles and forts (seven million visits). In 2012/13, nearly three quarters (73 per cent) of adults in England had visited at least one heritage site in the previous 12 months, a rise of 2.8 per cent on 2005/06. Heritage plays a number of important roles in the economy. Perhaps the most important are its impact on business location decisions and commercial property values; its impact on personal location decisions (and so the supply of labour locally available to business) and References 1 Office for National Statistics (ONS), Business Register and Employment Survey 2 Oxford Economics, (2013a), ‘The Economic Impact of the UK Heritage Tourism Economy’, a report for the Heritage Lottery Fund 3 Oxford Economics, (2013b), ‘An assessment of the economic impact of heritage buildings’, a report for the Heritage Lottery Fund 4 Ecorys (2012), ‘The Economic Impact of Maintaining and Repairing Historic Buildings in England’, A Report to the Heritage Lottery Fund and English Heritage 5 Visit EnglandVisitor Attractions Survey 2012
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