Heritage Link’s 2008 AGM and Heritage Day took place on 3 December at Hampstead Town Hall.
Heritage Link used the occasion to bring the sector together on the day of the Queen’s speech to discuss the way forward for heritage protection reform without the prospect of primary legislation. At our AGM Members of Heritage Link issued a statement expressing their severe disappointment that the Heritage Protection Bill had not been included in the Queen’s speech.
Harry Reeves, Deputy Director of the Culture Team at the Department of Culture, Media and Sport offered an insight into the reasons behind the omission of the Heritage Bill in the Queen’s Speech. He emphasised that despite its omission, the momentum behind heritage protection reform should be maintained.
The new Chair of the Heritage Lottery Fund, Jenny Abramsky, tied the HLF firmly into the challenges facing the heritage sector. She too argued that the momentum for heritage protection reform should not be lost. In particular she urged Government to capture in its vision statement the true value of heritage in its widest sense.
‘The vision must not disappoint’, she said, ‘at the very least it will need to reflect the degree to which people really appreciate their historic surroundings and it must acknowledge the huge public appetite for learning about the past. Fundamentally, it will need to demonstrate that Government can provide responsible stewardship for our heritage now, even in a time of recession, and in the future.’
We need to marshal our facts, she continued. ‘We need to find ways to show the intangible benefits that cherishing heritage can bring to society. We too need to articulate a vision for today’s world.’ And not least with a view to the next Comprehensive Spending Review, ‘we must continue to raise our game together to become ever more powerful advocates.’
Her experience from the BBC brings fresh insight to help make the heritage case more effectively. Next year she reminded us, is the 15th anniversary of the Heritage Lottery Fund ‘a rallying point for everyone who cares about our heritage and our future’.
