English Heritage (EH) Chairman Sir Neil Cossons today challenged the “throw away society” to value its historical assets and recognise the potential of historic buildings for social and economic regeneration.
Cossons was speaking at the publication today of EH’s 2001 Register of Buildings at Risk, which lists the nation’s most important historic buildings and a separate London Register.
Speaking at St. Leonard’s Church, Shoreditch, where he was launching the Register during Architecture Week, Cossons said: “Some have called this the age of the ‘throw away society’. If that is so, let us again learn from Ruskin who said, ‘when we build let us think that we build forever.’ “
He said the national register contained 1,593 important buildings and ancient monuments at risk. Cossons thought almost half could be brought into viable economic use – “if seed-corn funding could be found”.
Cossons added: “Last year English heritage offered £5.7m of grant aid towards 98 buildings on the Register. But to save all the entries would take £400m, far more than we can afford.” He urged the new government to recognise the “enormous regeneration potential” that these levels of investment would achieve.
He stressed the role of English Heritage as a catalyst for action and urged more local authorities to compile registers of their own. He said, “I urge all local authorities to set up local registers, ensure buildings at risk are repaired and, by following our ‘stop the rot’ strategy, ensure that more buildings do not become at risk in the future. Identifying problems early prevents deterioration, reduces the eventual cost of repairs and gains time for a permanent solution to be found.”
According to EH, of the 1,000 buildings on the first edition of the Register, some 85% have now been rescued.
EGi News 26/06/01
