A timely World Heritage UK technical meeting!

The World Heritage Team is pressing on with the review of the management plan.

On 25-26 January 2016, Historic Environment Scotland hosted a World Heritage: UK technical meeting in Edinburgh to discuss Management Plans (most timely workshop!). Lured by a Burns supper, Coordinators of the World Heritages Sites across the United Kingdom (29 in total as of February 2016) from all across the UK (Stonehenge, Iron Bridge, Tower of London, Saltaire, Jurrassic Coast…) came up to the capital to discuss what makes a management plan successful. Also present were representatives of ICOMOS UK (International Council on monuments and sites UK), Historic Environment Scotland, Historic England, IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) and DCMS (Department for Culture, Media & Sport).

World Heritage UK is an organisation set up in 2015 to undertake networking, advocacy and promotion for the UK’s 29 World Heritage Sites, and also those Sites progressing towards WHS status.

A number of issues emerged from the workshop. Those that might influence or shape the management plan were captured in the diagram below.

We agreed new chapter headings for the Management Plan at the last steering group meeting and noted the issues/ ideas that came out of the World Heritage: UK meeting.

The meeting provided an opportunity to take good practice ideas from all other sites from Orkney all the way to the Jurassic Coast.

It’s often hard to capture the energy and ideas from these events once back at our desks… but hopefully this diagram will make sense! The bubbles are linked to the relevant chapter and colour coded to whichever speaker raised or mentioned the issue.

Walking Tour

We took advantage of the location of the meeting to take the bravest of delegates on an early morning walk.

The first walk focussed on the recent development pressures in the New Town and the impact of these on the protected key views while the second walk concentrated on liveability issues in the Old Town.

How can I get involved?

What does world heritage means to you? What is important about it?

Share your thoughts by emailing Jenny or Chloe at worldheritage@edinburgh.gov.uk

We will keep you informed of progress and opportunities to get involved on the blog and on Twitter @planningedin. Our partner organisations will also be sharing information.