Providing a voice for the region's historic environment
Historic Environment and a Sense of Place
In 2009 Heritage Counts, focused on the role of the historic environment in shaping what individuals think and feel about where they live – their sense of place.
HEREC (the Historic Evironment Review Executive Committee) commissioned Newcastle University's Centre for Urban and Regional Studies (CURDS), Newcastle University International Centre for Cultural and Heritage Studies and Bradley Research and Consulting to undertake a ground breaking study which would provide the first robust evidence that the historic environment has a positive and significant impact on people's sense of place.
Key findings include:
- Adults who live in areas of higher levels of historic environment are likely to have a stronger sense of place1
- Young people and adults who are more interested in the historic enviornment are likley to have a stronger sense of place1
- Young people and adults who cite a local building or monument as special are likely to have a stronger sense of place1
1 When other socio-economic factors that impact on sense of place are held equal
A summary of the research can be found in the national Heritage Counts report which is included below. For more information please visit the Heritage Counts website.
Related Documents
Sense of Place and Social Capital and the Historic Built Environment (Aug 2009)
This report is by David Bradley (BR&C/CURDS) and Jane Bradley (BR&C) and Mike Coombes (CURDS) and Emmanouil Tranos (CURDS).
Literature Review: Historic Environment, Sense of Place, and Social Capital (Aug 2009)
Dr Helen Graham, Dr Rhiannon Mason and Andrew Newman International Centre for Cultural and Heritage Studies (ICCHS) Newcastle University.
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