The Department for Culture, Media and Sport's consultation on the historic environment closes at the end of this month.

Forum Response: English Heritage

Dr Simon Thurley, chief executive of English Heritage, said: "The foundation of our response is the commitment, shared by the secretary of state in announcing this review, that we need to maintain the present levels of statutory protection for the historic environment.

"We also welcome the recognition that a successful system should retain its time-tested core components while enhancing them with greater simplicity, flexibility, openness and rigour.

"English Heritage believes the end result must be that owners are better informed about why their property or ancient monument has been protected, what is considered important about it and how they can best look after it.

"Local authorities should have clearer guidance about how to enable change and apply controls developers enjoy greater certainty.

"Amenity societies and others concerned locally or nationally with conserving the historic environment are better able to obtain information and participate and everyone should benefit from a simpler system and from the proposed responsibilities and disciplines on English Heritage."

"We recognise that there is still much work to do to flesh out the detailed implications of putting the improved system into practice.

"Ministers have now agreed our proposals to refocus our designation resources over the next two years to pilot the new ideas of a single national List, unified designation and more flexible management.

"Our intention is that our 30 pilot schemes should inform government's future decision-making right through the process to new legislation and beyond.

"However, for the project to be successful, English Heritage believes that the time is right for a wide-ranging debate around the issue of resources and how the management of the historic environment should work.

"Ensuring the new system can be implemented successfully requires a considerable increase in capacity building and education in local authorities and across the sector and a commitment to improving the quality of decision making at all levels.

"It should be made a priority in the government's 2004 spending review because it would be an investment for the nation.

"In taking forward the government's proposals for a new system of heritage protection and ensuring they form part of a joined up approach to the management of the historic environment, we are committed to working with the DCMS, ODPM and DEFRA, as well as local authorities and our partners in the historic environment sector."