Catalogue description Ministry of Public Building and Works and successors: Ancient Monuments and Historic Buildings: Papers

In England the period 1970 to 1992 began with consolidation of responsibility for preservation of the built environment into one department of state, the Department of the Environment (DoE). Later, responsibilities for advice, care and maintenance were devolved to sponsored bodies, whilst the DoE retained responsibility for policy, decisions on listing, scheduling and taking monuments into care, and planning issues.

Government reorganisation following the general election in 1992 transferred responsibility for most of DOE's heritage matters (including sponsorship responsibilities and conservation policy) to the newly created Department of National Heritage (DNH). However, responsibility for planning policy remained with DoE. At the same time, many more government departments were being involved in the preservation of the built environment partly due to a policy change in the allocation of responsibility for the maintenance of the government estate, but also as a result of the widening scope of the protected built environment.

The Department of the Environment (DoE) was established in November 1970 by merger of three existing Ministries: Public Buildings and Works; Housing and Local Government; and Transport. This followed a Machinery of Government Review and the subsequent publication of the Reorganisation of Central Government White Paper (Cmnd 4506) in September 1970. The areas of DoE's responsibility relating to preservation of the built environment in England were inherited from the Ministry of Public Buildings and Works (care and preservation of ancient monuments and royal palaces), and the Ministry of Housing and Local Government (care and preservation of listed buildings and conservation areas and planning control).

Within DoE duties remained divided until a new unified Directorate was established in 1972. The role of the new Directorate of Ancient Monuments and Historic Buildings (DAMHB) was to carry out archaeological excavation; advise on the treatment, care and preservation, display and commercial management of ancient monuments and historic buildings, including those on the government estate; advise on the payment of grants to owners of listed buildings and ancient monuments; to administer and regulate the royal parks and have special responsibility for the royal palaces.

Three bodies continued to function as separate units within the new DoE Directorate of Ancient Monuments and Historic Buildings until 1984: the Ancient Monuments Board for England, the Inspectorate of Ancient Monuments and the Historic Buildings Council for England.

The Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England (known as English Heritage) was established as an independent body sponsored by DoE under the National Heritage Act 1983. Its board of Commissioners was set up in October 1983; formal operation began in April 1984. Responsibility for the care and preservation of England's national monuments passed from the DAHMB to the new Commission and two former advisory bodies (The Ancient Monuments Board for England and The Historic Buildings Council for England) ceased to exist.

Whilst much of the responsibility for ancient monuments and historic buildings in England subsequently moved to English Heritage in April 1984, the DoE Directorate of Ancient Monuments and Historic Buildings retained responsibility for the royal palaces, royal parks, the Tower of London (the Armouries were the responsibility of a separate Board of Trustees from April 1984), Trafalgar Square, and Osborne House. A new Heritage Sponsorship Division was created within the DoE Directorate to take responsibility for heritage policy, European and international heritage matters, listing and scheduling, building consent casework and policy, conservation areas policy, heritage taxation, and sponsorship of heritage bodies such as English Heritage and The Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England. It became responsible subsequently for heritage funds.

The DoE's Property Services Agency (PSA) retained responsibility for the maintenance of the historic buildings in the government estate throughout the UK from 1972 to 1990.This departmental agency was created in September 1972 largely from the former works departments of the Ministry of Public Buildings and Works, which by then included responsibility for the Armed Services Works Directorates. The Defence Lands Service was added from the Ministry of Defence in 1972.

At the abolition of the Greater London Council (GLC) in 1986 (under the Local Government Bill 1984) English Heritage took on the responsibilities formerly carried out by the GLC's Historic Buildings Division. These included care of the historic buildings formerly owned by the GLC, and responsibility for the London Sites and Monuments Register and for historic building planning consent within the former GLC area.

By 1988 individual government departments had been encouraged to assume financial responsibility for their own accommodation. In 1990 PSA was restructured and, as PSA Services, was grouped within a new organisational unit within DoE called Property Holdings. PSA Services was eventually privatised in 1992.

Historic Royal Palaces Agency (HRPA) was established in October 1989 as an executive agency of the DoE as part of the Next Steps initiative. Responsibility for all matters relating to those royal palaces open to the public (including the Tower of London) passed to the new agency. It was responsible for the care, preservation and presentation to the public of the five unoccupied historic royal palaces in England, which are owned by The Queen on behalf of the nation. These were HM Tower of London (excluding The Armouries), Hampton Court Palace, Kensington Palace State Apartments, the Banqueting House at Whitehall, Kew Palace and Queen Charlotte's Cottage. DoE retained responsibility for the occupied royal palaces and Osborne House, as well as for statues and monuments.

In 1991 DoE began reviewing its responsibility for the royal parks and the Royal Parks Constabulary. However, matters were not resolved until after the creation of DNH in 1992. Responsibilities held by the Royal Parks Division of DNH passed to The Royal Parks Agency - a Next Steps executive agency created in 1993.

The Department of National Heritage (DNH) was created in May 1992 amalgamating functions previously scattered between several government departments. In terms of the preservation of the built environment, responsibility for most of DoE’s heritage matters passed to DNH’s Heritage and Royal Estate Divisions, including its sponsorship of heritage bodies and heritage funds, and liaison with the voluntary sector. Responsibility for planning decisions remained with the DoE.