All heritage assets are unique and it is acknowledged that it can be difficult to work out what should be incorporated within a Heritage Statement. The scope and degree of detail necessary in a Heritage Statement will vary according to the particular circumstances of each application.
To help you provide the appropriate information, the Council, in conjunction with other East Sussex Local Planning Authorities, has produced a Heritage Statement Template for completion and submission with all listed building consent applications, and with planning applications where relevant.
The Heritage Statement should be completed and submitted for all applications that require listed building consent and also for applications that potentially impact upon any heritage asset, either directly or through change within their setting. Please see the flow chart below and Appendix 4 for List of Local Validation Requirements for further information and guidance for each type of Heritage Asset where a Heritage Statement is likely to be required.
In order to validate your application please complete ALL parts of the Heritage Statement Template and submit with your application. Alternatively, if you wish to use an alternative format for your Heritage Statement, in order for your application to be validated, your statement MUST cover all the headings requiring information within the Council’s template.
Completing your Heritage Statement
Your statement using the Heritage Statement Template provided, or an alternative format that covers all the headings in the template, should cover the following points and the information required should be relevant and proportionate to the works proposed:
- Provide an examination of the asset and its setting, including a thorough visual and physical analysis of the heritage asset, its setting and context, based on and utilising all the information obtained through your HER consultation.
- Provide a consideration as to whether the nature of the affected significance requires an expert assessment in order to gain the necessary level of understanding to inform the proposed works to the asset.
For additional help in addressing the two points above, guidance for each type of Heritage Asset is provided in the flow chart:
You may also find it useful to read the guidance provided by Historic England on Significance and Understanding Setting .
Please see Appendix 4 for the List of Local Validation Requirements for further information and guidance for each type of Heritage Asset.