Programme overview
Introduction:
Built heritage and archaeological site management is the subject of this 5-day course for heritage authority and development-project units that run historic districts, ruins and excavated landscapes, and it ends with a Site Management Plan for a case site. Many sites open to visitors before anyone has agreed what makes them significant, so mud-brick walls erode, trenches stay unbackfilled and footfall outruns paths, shade and income. Nominees already oversee sites, contractors or permits, and teaching uses inspection walkthroughs of fabric, setting and visitor routes. CoreConcept Training Center delivers this built heritage and archaeological site management course.
Course Objectives:
- Prepare a statement of cultural significance for a historic district or archaeological site using the Burra Charter process
- Draft conservation policies and a conservation management plan that set limits for intervention, reuse and new construction
- Design a condition monitoring routine for standing walls, roofs, excavated remains and site drainage with clear trigger levels
- Screen proposed works and developments in the setting and buffer zone through a Heritage Impact Assessment
- Calculate visitor carrying capacity and plan zoning, routes and timed access that protect fragile fabric
- Build a site revenue and operating model and assemble it into a Site Management Plan with performance indicators
Target Audience:
- Heritage authority units accountable for listing, permitting and protecting historic districts and archaeological sites
- Development-project units that plan tourism, hospitality and infrastructure around heritage assets
- Site management units responsible for daily operations, maintenance contracts and staff at open sites
- Conservation and archaeology units that commission surveys, excavation backfilling and stabilisation works
- Planning and urban design units that control new building, signage and services inside historic districts
- Commercial and destination units that set ticketing, concessions and partnership income for heritage sites
Course Outline:
Day 1: Heritage Site Values, Threats and Baseline Survey
- Built Heritage, Historic District and Archaeological Landscape Definitions Compared
- Venice Charter Principles for Monuments and Site Authenticity
- Stakeholder Mapping Grid for Owners, Residents and Developers
- Threat Register for Erosion, Looting, Neglect and Development Pressure
- Baseline Site Survey with Plans, Photographs and Gazetteer
Day 2: Significance Assessment and Conservation Management Planning
- Burra Charter Process from Understanding to Management Policy
- Statement of Significance Covering Aesthetic, Historic and Scientific Values
- Outstanding Universal Value, Integrity and Authenticity Tests Applied
- Conservation Management Plan Structure, Policies and Approval Route
- Preservation, Restoration and Reconstruction Decision Criteria Applied
Day 3: Condition Monitoring of Standing Fabric and Excavated Remains
- Condition Survey Forms for Mud-Brick, Stone and Timber Fabric
- Crack, Moisture and Salt Monitoring with Gauges and Loggers
- Excavated Trench Protection, Backfilling and Shelter Options
- Maintenance Schedule and Works Contract Specification for Fabric
- Heritage Risk Management Approach for Floods, Fire and Collapse
Day 4: Visitor Carrying Capacity, Development Control and Site Revenue
- Visitor Carrying Capacity Calculation for Paths and Monuments
- Zoning Plan with Timed Entry and One-Way Visitor Routes
- Heritage Impact Assessment for Hotels, Roads and Utilities
- Buffer Zone Controls on Height, Materials and Views
- Site Revenue Model with Ticketing, Concessions and Event Hire
Day 5: Inspection Walkthrough and Site Management Plan Build
- Inspection Walkthrough of a Case Archaeological Site and District
- Case Site Significance Statement and Condition Findings Review
- Case Site Capacity, Zoning and Access Proposal Defence
- Management Plan Indicators, Action Plan and Review Cycle
- Site Management Plan Completion and Peer Review Panel
Skills You Will Gain:
- Cultural Significance Assessment
- Conservation Policy Drafting
- Fabric Condition Surveying
- Heritage Impact Screening
- Carrying Capacity Analysis
- Visitor Zoning Design
- Heritage Site Revenue Modelling
- Site Monitoring Indicator Design
Why Attend This Course:
- Deliver a Site Management Plan for a case site to the heritage director and project steering committee
- Decide whether a proposed hotel, road or reconstruction fits the site's significance before approval
- Avoid irreversible damage to walls and excavated remains caused by uncontrolled footfall or untested works
- Coach site teams and contractors on condition recording and visitor zoning routines
Conclusion:
Back at work, the participant presents the Site Management Plan to the heritage director, project steering committee and site operations lead, who use it to approve conservation works, visitor access limits and revenue targets for the site. Planning units apply its buffer zone and impact screening to incoming development proposals. After the first season of operation, the organisation should review monitoring readings, visitor counts against carrying capacity and income, then adjust policies, zoning and the maintenance schedule.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ):
What should participants know before a built heritage and archaeological site management course?
Participants should already oversee a heritage site, a district, permits or works contracts. No archaeology degree is needed. Bringing plans, photographs or reports of a site they manage helps during the inspection walkthrough and the plan build.
How does built heritage and archaeological site management differ from museum collections care?
It deals with whole places: standing buildings, ruins, excavated remains, their setting and the visitors moving through them. Museum collections care deals with movable objects inside galleries and stores, with loans, documentation and display rather than fabric, buffer zones and carrying capacity.
Why does built heritage and archaeological site management need a visitor carrying capacity figure?
Because footfall beyond what paths, walls and services can bear causes erosion, crowding and poor experience. A carrying capacity figure sets daily and hourly limits that drive timed entry, routes and ticket release, and it should be reviewed against monitoring results.
What do participants take back from the built heritage and archaeological site management course?
Participants take back a Site Management Plan for a case site, with a statement of significance, conservation policies, a condition monitoring routine, carrying capacity and zoning, impact screening criteria, a revenue model and performance indicators.