LONDON, ENGLAND.-Research into understanding England’s historic environment – its condition, threats and value - will benefit from a more coordinated approach with the other devolved home countries, according to English Heritage. This ambitious yet much needed approach to more joined up research is one of the proposals in English Heritage’s own research strategy. Entitled 'Discovering the Past, Shaping the Future', the strategy aims to steer English Heritage to use research more effectively to support its own business, government priorities and the historic environment’s needs for the next five years. It also contains a proposal for the establishment of a UK-wide research strategy for the historic environment and its sustainable management.

Dr Edward Impey, English Heritage’s Director of Research and Standards, said: “We want our own strategy to act as a catalyst for a debate on the need for and the shape of a UK-wide research strategy, to ensure that research needs are clearly defined, priorities established and duplication avoided. We clearly see the potential and the need for heritage organisations in England and those representing the devolved home country administrations in Wales (Cadw), Scotland (Historic Scotland) and Northern Ireland (Environment and Heritage Service), and others, to work together to create and make use of the knowledge brought about by research more effectively.”

Views on who should be involved in its development and on what the UK-wide strategy should contain can be made in writing to James Stevens at james.stevens@english-heritage.org.uk by 31st January 2006.

Dr Impey continued: “The historic environment touches on virtually all aspects of our lives and the world we inhabit. Research interests in this field, in the arts and humanities, science, technology and engineering, are also reflected in the fields of agriculture tourism and construction which all impact on the historic environment in different ways. So there may be more common questions and solutions to common problems than previously envisaged and a chance to share research and research results across a broader constituency of interest. Our own research will broaden its multidisciplinary scope, from social history and town planning to architecture, information science and earth and environmental sciences, for example, to help reinforce the holistic approach to understanding the historic environment and its value.”