Archaeological advice

The assistance of the Archaeology and Historic Environment Service is available to anyone who needs impartial and practical advice on managing, preserving or understanding archaeological remains. It can be of particular help to:

The Service is regularly consulted by the Farming and Rural Conservation Agency (DEFRA) with regard to the evaluation of applications for grant aided Countryside Stewardship agreements and by the Forest Authority with regard to applications under the Woodland Grant Scheme . In both cases the candidate sites are inspected for hitherto unrecorded archaeological features and reports and recommendations are made to the relevant bodies. Landowners are advised that early consultation with the Archaeology and Historic Environment Service before proposals are submitted will save time and money.

The Archaeology and Historic Environment Service advises the local planning authority on archaeological matters. All registered planning applications, including Hedgerow Removal Notices received under the Hedgerow Regulations 1997 are checked against the Sites and Monuments Record and are scrutinised for conformity with archaeological policies contained within the Unitary Development Plan. Site inspections are made when necessary. In some cases prospective developers are requested to commission and to provide the results of archaeological investigation before a planning application is considered. Such investigation normally takes one of the following forms:

When important archaeological sites are threatened with damage or destruction, it is sometimes recommended that the application be refused. In most cases, however, problems can be overcome by changes to the plans or by the developer arranging for specified archaeological work to be carried out in advance of or during the development. Such mitigation is often ensured by conditions attached to the planning approval. Specified archaeological work might include:

Click here to find out more about archaeology, development and planning law (Planning Policy Guidance 16; Archaeology and Planning, DoE November 1990). Government advises that all prospective developers should include an initial assessment of whether the site is known or likely to contain archaeological remains as part of their research into the development potential of a site, before making a planning application. On the Isle of Wight the first step is to consult the Archaeology and Historic Environment Service where the County Sites and Monuments Record is housed. By consultation at an early stage, the needs of archaeology and development can be reconciled, and potential conflict can be very much reduced.