Over the past year, 175 historic buildings and sites have been added to Historic England’s Heritage at Register because of their deteriorating condition.
Published today, the Heritage at Risk Register for 2022 gives an annual snapshot of the health of England’s historic places and those most at risk of being lost as a result of neglect, decay or inappropriate development.
The Register also shows that 233 sites have been saved, many rescued after the work of teams of volunteers, community groups, charities, owners and councils, working together with Historic England.
In total, there are 4919 entries on the Register in England, 66 fewer than in 2021.
Significant additions to the Register include the Victorian Papplewick Pumping Station in Nottingham – England’s only pumping station to still have all its original features. Historic England said the site is suffering from age-related deterioration.
Also newly at risk is King Arthur’s Great Halls in Tintagel, Cornwall, which now faces major repairs.
Sites saved include two well-known sections of the 73-mile long Hadrian’s Wall known as Steel Rigg in Northumberland and Port Carlisle in Cumbria. The sections of the wall have been protected through conservation work and removed from the Register. This year marks the 1900th anniversary of the Wall.
Other sites newly at risk include the Birmingham & Midland Institute, which played a leading role in introducing scientific and technical education to Birmingham during the late 19th century, but has now fallen into disrepair.
Historic England awarded £8.66 million in repair grants to 185 historic places and sites, including conservation areas, on the Heritage at Risk Register over the past year. In addition, 15 sites have benefitted from £3.25 million in grants from the heritage at risk strand of the Culture Recovery Fund during 2021/2022.
Duncan Wilson, Chief Executive of Historic England said: “It is central to Historic England’s mission that we pass on to future generations the rich legacy of historic buildings and places that we have inherited from previous generations.
“As the threat of climate change grows, the reuse and sensitive upgrading of historic buildings and places becomes ever more important. Finding new uses for buildings and sites rescued from the Register avoids the high carbon emissions associated with demolishing structures and building new”.
The Heritage at Risk Register 2022 reveals that in England 233 sites have been saved and 175 sites have been added to the Register. The breakdown of the sites that are at risk of neglect, decay or inappropriate change in 2022 is:
