28 C O N T E X T 1 2 8 : M A R C H 2 0 1 3 MATTHEW GODFREY The Lincolnshire Heritage at Risk Project The Lincolnshire Heritage at Risk project, now closing, has created a full set of survey data through the hard work and enthusiasm of more than 300 volunteer heritage stewards. In ‘A new approach to involving volunteers’ (Context 114, May 2010), Liz Bates of Heritage Lincolnshire reported on the start of the Lincolnshire Heritage at Risk Project. This aimed to engage a large number of volunteers in an ambitious plan to survey over 9,000 heritage assets across the county. Heritage at risk is a well-known concept within the heritage industry but less well understood by the general public. In January 2010 Heritage Lincolnshire started an innovative approach to address this problem.The pilot project was developed in partnership with the IHBC and funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, English Heritage, Lincolnshire County Council and other local project partners. The aims of the project were to raise awareness of heritage at risk and involve local volunteer ‘heritage stewards’ in a county-wide at-risk survey of listed buildings, listed places of worship, locally listed buildings, conservation areas, registered and unregistered parks and gardens, and a sample of 600 archaeological sites.The data from these surveys would be used to give a snapshot of the condition of the county’s heritage assets, allowing trends and problem areas to be identified.This would provide a basis for formulating new short- and long-term conservation strategies for lessening the instances of heritage at risk within Lincolnshire. At the start of the project the long list of assets was a daunting prospect. Meeting the minimum project aims of 75 per cent of surveys seemed an almost impossible target. However, after almost three years of hard work by volunteers and project staff the minimum target has been exceeded.This has put Lincolnshire in a unique position of having an up-to-date snapshot of the condition of over 80 per cent of its heritage assets. Such a detailed and wide-ranging survey would not have been possible without the help, enthusiasm and expertise of a large number of dedicated volunteer heritage stewards. Medieval villages study day, Donington on Bain Surveying at Hemingby Heritage stewards’ training at Corby Glen
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