Our Events

Heritage in 20 years: what will matter most?

We held our 2022 Heritage Debate on the evening of Thursday 24 November 2022, (5pm – 7pm online).

This year, five expert panellists made the case for one of 5 specific priorities, and why it will be the most important issue for the sector in 20 years’ time. Visit the Heritage Debate 2022 event page for our agenda and more about our 2022 speakers. This year, we also asked anyone with an interest in heritage to send us a short blog post on what they think will matter most to heritage in 20 years’ time.

Explore their broad range of perspectives by visiting our Heritage Debate 2022 event page and explore further resources that we shared during the event.

‘Levelling Up’: What Does it Mean for Heritage?

Our virtual Heritage Debate 2021 took place on 30 November, focussed on the topic of ‘Levelling Up’: What Does it Mean for Heritage? We brought together panellists from across the sector to discuss, debate and put forward a range of perspectives on this topic: Dr Nicola Stacey, Director - Heritage of London Trust, Dr Tola Dabiri, Director - Brick by Brick Communities and Museum X, David Tittle, Chief Executive - Heritage Trust Network, Paul Clement, Chief Executive - Ipswich Central and Matthew McKeague, Director - Architectural Heritage Fund. The discussion was led by the Heritage Alliance Chair Pam Alexander OBE.

In line with this event, we invited heritage professionals to also share their perspectives in short blogs, which can be read on our dedicated blog site. You can also review discussion around this topic on social media by searching #HeritageDebate2021.

With thanks to our Corporate Partner Ecclesiastical Insurance Group and our sponsors the Architectural Heritage Fund for supporting this free event for the sector.

Young People and Heritage: Creating Lifelong Supporters?

In 2020, we explored how young people engage with heritage and how the sector can support and empower these young people to become advocates for heritage into the future with the topic ‘Young People and Heritage: Creating Lifelong Supporters?’ Attendees were treated to a keynote speech from 4 of English Heritage’s Shout Out Loud Young Producers, who offered the panel provocations that kickstarted the Debate, and event sponsors Ecclesiastical offered an insight into their recent youth and heritage research study.

Co-Chaired by The Heritage Alliance’s own Daniella Briscoe-Peaple alongside Oxford University’s Alice Purkiss, we welcomed four panellists from across the sector:

• Alison Bowyer, Executive Director, Kids in Museums
• Ana Persinaru, Youth Engagement Consultant
• Anita Kerwin-Nye, Director of Strategy and Engagement, YHA
• Grace Connelly, SPAB Education and Training Officer.

In the lead-up to Heritage Debate 2020, we sought blogs from young people in the UK aged 16-24 with an interest in heritage to answer the question ‘What does heritage mean to you?’ - all their submissions can be read here here on our dedicated blogsite.

And the full debate can be watched here on Youtube.

Reaching for Net Zero?

Our 2019 debate focused on the relationship between heritage and the environment. At a time when countries around the world, including the UK, are making commitments to move to a net zero emissions economy, now is the time to ensure that the heritage sector is involved in these discussions as we move into the future. We are very grateful to Ecclesiastical Insurance Group for sponsoring this event.

Panellists included:

• David Saddington, Environmentalist and Climate Change Communicator
• Keith Jones, Environmental Adviser for the National Trust
• Dr Meredith Wiggins, Historic England’s leading Environmental Analyst
• Dr Hannah Fluck, Head of Environmental Research
• Tim Heatley, Capital & Centric’s Co-Founder

You can listen to the debate here and download the slides here.

Diversifying heritage in the 21st century

Our 2018 debate was centred around the challenge ‘how do we get more diverse audiences to connect with heritage?’ The speakers discussed class, disability, LGBTI+, BAME, women and youth in relation to the sector, exploring ways we can achieve better inclusion in terms of workforce diversity, public engagement and the narrative of collections/material culture and locations. We were looking to give participants a sense of the challenges the sector faces and the good practices we need to put in place to achieve greater diversity.

We heard from:

• Andrew Miller, UK Government Disability Champion for Arts and Culture
• Dr Corinne Fowler, Colonial Countryside: National Trust Houses Reinterpreted; Professor, University of Leicester
• Abigael Flack, Collections Officer, Multaka-Oxford Project, Pitt Rivers Museum & Museum of Science
• Jonathan Badyal, Head of Communications, Universal Music UK
• Errol Francis, Chief Executive of Culture
• Sacha Coward, LGBTQ+ positive museum work, Participation Producer, Royal Museums Greenwich
• Professor Margot Finn, President of the Royal Historical Society; Professor of Modern British History, UCL

You can watch the slides and listen to the audio of the debate here.

Is heritage good for your health?

We like to think heritage is good for people’s wellbeing and health, and some evidence is starting to be available to back this up. Heritage participation can improve mental health, and the historic environment can provide an attractive backdrop to physical activity. This debate did not so much challenge these statements, as ask how the heritage sector can do better to build bridges with the world of public health. What claims can realistically be made for the health benefits of heritage, and where does heritage best intersect with the public health needs of the nation?

The panel included:

• Professor Helen Chatterjee, Professor of Biology at UCL Biosciences and Head of Research and Teaching, UCL Culture.
• Daniel Fujiwara, Director, Simetrica Consulting
• Ian Lush, Chief Executive, Imperial Health Charity
• Richard Osgood, Senior Archaeologist, Defence Infrastructure Organisation.
• Emma Hanson, Head of Strategic Commissioning Adult Community Support, Kent County Council
• Sue Gray, Director of Suffolk Mind
• Adala Leeson, Head of Social and Economic Research, Historic England

You can listen to the debate and see the accompanying slides on Youtube.

Heritage & Research: Bridging the Gap

In 2016, our Heritage Debate explored how heritage research influences public and private sector decision-making – or not. Millions of choices are made in the property industry and by modest private owners every day, while champions like The Heritage Alliance need to access relevant and timely evidence to support their advocacy. Universities are increasingly required to be more engaged with external audiences and to demonstrate impact but the outcomes of academic research, whether from history or psychology faculties, do not always reach the audiences that can put them to good use.

Alliance Chairman Loyd Grossman introduced the evening, chaired by HLF Chief Executive and former Alliance trustee, Ros Kerslake. The panel included:

• Dr Oliver Cox, University of Oxford’s Heritage Engagement Fellow
• Bernard Donoghue, Chairman of The Tourism Alliance (and Alliance Trustee)
• Trevor Osborne, Chairman of The Trevor Osborne Property Group.

You can see the accompanying slides and listen to the debate here on Youtube.

The H Word: Heritage ‘Revisited’

This Heritage Debate explored perceptions of the word ‘Heritage’. Is it a help or hindrance in attracting political recognition or private investment or do outdated connotations perpetuate the myths that heritage is a brake on growth or just a warm bathe in nostalgia? ComRes, the leading research consultancy, launched a new snapshot of public perceptions of the word ‘heritage’.

You can see photos from the Debate here on Flickr.

Heritage and Government: Towards a Coherent Policy?

This debate examined the changing role the state has played in supporting our heritage for public benefit. Conrad Bird, Director of the Cabinet Office’s GREAT Britain campaign illustrated the importance of heritage to the UK’s position at the top of the soft power league. Sir Laurie Magnus, Chairman of Historic England outlined the new English Heritage model and warned that ‘the gravy train of state support has gone’. The 150-strong audience raised issues about education, everyday heritage, VAT and developers’ perceptions of heritage, local authority capacity and the fate of Local Authority heritage assets.

You can listen to the podcast here on SoundCloud and see photos from the debate here on Flickr.

Heritage and Identity: What makes you who you are?

Is heritage just a socially acceptable version of tribalism? Has social media produced a culture of ‘place-less’ relationships? These were some of the central themes explored in a major public debate on heritage and identity held at Newcastle University. The questions of how heritage affects people’s sense of identity and what heritage a North Easterner or Geordie would single out as shaping their sense of self were also on the agenda.

You can watch the debate here on YouTube.

Heritage and Philanthropy: Turning Public Passion into Pounds

The debate, Heritage and Philanthropy: Turning Public Passion into Pounds, covered topics including how to persuade people that culture is just as important as other causes in a crowded market, how to attract corporate and donor sponsorship for heritage outside London, how to foster common interests between the heritage and arts sector, alongside demonstrating the importance of social justice factors and the importance of valuing local support.

You can listen to a recording of the event here on Vimeo.

Heritage and Television: Who Profits More?

Broadcast heritage is a huge source of both information and entertainment, but what does heritage gain from this extensive exposure? The Debate, held at The Merchant Adventurers’ Hall, York, explored whether the face of heritage on TV really is a true picture, how television affects our perceptions of heritage, and how it influences the way heritage organisations engage with audiences

You can watch highlights of the debate here on YouTube.

Heritage and Profit: Who Gains Most?

The Debate, based in Paintworks, Bristol, explored how public and private interests use heritage to achieve their objectives and how economic activity around our older buildings, our heritage railways, our collections, our leisure moments and festival venues drive millions of businesses across the country. Far from being a brake on economic growth, heritage underpins some of our most powerful industries – tourism, construction and the creative and cultural industries.

Heritage and Tourism: Who Needs Whom?

This Debate, held at Magdalene College, Cambridge, explored the relationship between heritage and tourism and the extent to which heritage is becoming understood as simply a branch of the tourism industry. The event brought the heritage community, owners and users, together with senior figures from the heritage movement, the tourism sector, the private sector, and the world of academia.

Heritage Day 2022 took place over 9 and 10 March 2022. The event was hybrid this year, combining virtual insight panels and a series of informative breakout sessions from sector experts with an in-person eventat the historic Christ Church Spitalfields in London. The event featured a keynote address from Heritage Minister Nigel Huddleston MP, curated discussion panels, and a long-awaited opportunity to network at an afternoon reception with other heritage professionals.

You can also take a look back at our Virtual Programme for Heritage Day 2022, which set out all the key details for both the virtual and in-person sessions for this event.

At each Heritage Day we announce the winners of our annual Ecclesiastical's Heritage Heroes Awards, which recognise the incredible contribution of volunteers in the heritage sector each year.

Heritage Day 2021 was our first ever virtual Heritage Day, held over two mornings via Zoom.

Attendees joined The Heritage Alliance, Sir Laurie Magnus, Chair of Historic England and the Minister of State for Digital and Culture Caroline Dinenage MP, plus colleagues from across the sector for a range of engaging sessions, performances and networking opportunities in an informative and interactive online event.

You can read more and see the Alliance's virtual programme for the event here.

Heritage Day 2019, which was postponed due to circumstances around the 2019 election, was held on 26 February 2020 at the stunning Tower of London. Attendees joined our Chair Peter Ainsworth, Nigel Huddleston MP, the new DCMS Minister for Sport, Tourism and Heritage, and Sir Tim Laurence, Chair of English Heritage, along with a list of other eminent speakers.

You can listen to Nigel Huddleston MP, Sir Tim Laurence, Peter Ainsworth and Faith Kitchen’s speeches online, as well as this year’s HEDx Talks. Slides from the day to accompany the speeches are also available to download as a PDF here (20.8mb).

Heritage Day 2018 was held in London’s Grade-I listed Queen Mary Undercroft at the magnificent Old Royal Naval College [Alliance member], sponsored by Ecclesiastical Insurance Group. The event gathered many of the leaders of the British independent heritage sector, together with Michael Ellis, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Arts, Heritage and Tourism, Chair Loyd Grossman and Hilary McGrady, the new National Trust Director-General, as well as other important speakers.

Michael Ellis used the opportunity to announce that the Government was publishing the Heritage Statement: One Year On, detailing Government’s vision and strategy for heritage and the historic environment. You can view a transcript of the Minister’s speech here. You can listen to the audio of the debate online in two parts; the first is available here on YouTube and the second part is also available here on YouTube.

The Heritage Minister, John Glen, chose The Heritage Alliance’s 2017 Heritage Day to launch his Heritage Statement. The Minister also said ‘ I commend the work of the Heritage Alliance. We are very fortunate to have Loyd, Lizzie and the rest of the team doing the great work that they do for our heritage and for the heritage sector’ read the Minister’s speech’.

The Day also saw the launch of our new Heritage Funding Directory with the Architectural Heritage Fund.

You can view photos of the day here on Flickr.

The Heritage Alliance’s 2016 Heritage Day was held in London’s spectacular Grade-II* listed Freemason’s Hall, built 1927–1932 as a memorial to the Freemasons who died in the First World War. Our Chairman Loyd Grossman CBE, Lord Ashton of Hyde (DCMS Lords Minister),Dame Helen Ghosh, Director General of the National Trust and others explored the challenges and opportunities facing the heritage sector.

You can view the agenda PDF here (0.5mb).

Heritage Day 2015 took place in the magnificent Christ Church, Spitalfields. Lloyd Grossman, Chair of the Alliance’s message was to ‘turn up the volume’, be less reticent and more forceful in making the case. Sir Laurie Magnus, Chairman of Historic England, noted the extraordinarily high levels of participation in heritage in the UK then launched the fourteenth edition of Heritage Counts. Minister Tracey Crouch continued the positive message reviewing some of the achievements of 2015 – the establishment of the new English Heritage model, the reductions in the Heritage at Risk Register and the tougher sentencing for heritage crimes.

Images of the event can be found here on Flickr.

Heritage Day 2014 was held at the Glaziers’ Hall. The morning gave members the opportunity to hear and question Deborah Lamb, Head of Government Advice at English Heritage, on the proposals for the new English Heritage model. Sir Philip Mawer, Chairman of the Allchurches Trust gave a presentation on the grant making policy and future strategy of the Trust.

The Afternoon Session saw the spokesmen of the three main political parties address the audience on the value of our heritage today: Ed Vaizey, Minister for Culture Communications and the Creative Industries for the Conservatives, Baroness Bonham-Carter for the Lib Dems and Chris Bryant, Shadow Culture Secretary for the Labour Party.

You can view the Hustings on YouTube video here, Lloyd Grossman’s speech on Youtube, and Sir Philip Mawer’s speech on YouTube. A transcript of Baroness Bonham-Carter’s speech is also available here as a PDF (0.3mb).