Agenda item

6.1

Robin Hughes (Joined Up Heritage Sheffield) gave a presentation on Joined up Heritage to the Local Area Committee and members of the public in attendance.

6.2

Joined Up Heritage Sheffield (JUHS) aimed to be a collective voice for Sheffield and had existed for approximately 7 years. It was explained that heritage was anything inherited from the past that someone wanted to keep safe and pass on to people in the future.

6.3

Sheffield has a heritage strategy which was published by Joined Up Heritage Sheffield in January 2021. As of February 2023, Sheffield City Council is committed to working with the Heritage Partnership Board to implement the strategy. As part of the strategy, there was a 10-year action plan in which Sheffield will understand and celebrate its heritage, champion a diverse heritage reflecting a diverse city, exploit the economic potential of heritage, support the educational value of heritage and recognise the social, wellbeing and environmental benefits of heritage.

6.4

Robin Hughes explained that there are 5 key aims of the heritage strategy, which were: -

Aim 1: Understand and celebrate

·       Creates its distinctive sense of place.

·       Increases its appeal to visitors.

·       Increases its economic vitality as a place to live and work.

·       If we understand and celebrate heritage, we value it, see it in a positive light and work to conserve and enhance it.

Aim 2: Diverse heritage

·       Heritage is for everyone. It can bring us together.

·       Championing the diverse heritage of this wonderfully diverse city

·       Helps people and communities feel their connection to Sheffield’s heritage.

·       Helps them feel their part in Sheffield’s present.

Aim 3: Economy

·       Heritage sustains the city’s prosperity by boosting property values and bringing in customers, workers and visitors.

·       Exploiting the economic potential changes decisions about relocation, regeneration, construction and development, job creation and national grant funding.

Aim 4: Education

·       Heritage teaches us about the past and can point to better ways to live life today and to shape the future.

·       Sheffield needs to support the educational value of heritage in our schools and colleges, across communities and for life-long learning.

Aim 5: Social, Wellbeing, Environment

·       Sharing our heritage connects us.

·       Exploring our heritage makes us active.

·       Learning about heritage keeps us aware and engaged.

·       Heritage volunteering helps others.

·       Conserving and re-using helps the climate.

6.5

Some examples of the work carried out by Joined Up Heritage Sheffield were: - 

·       Meeting/lobbying Council members and officers.

·       Consultation feedback.

o   e.g. Local Plan, Race Equality Commission, Economic Strategies

·       Local Heritage List.

·       Campaigning, e.g. Conservation Areas.

·       Developing links with stakeholders.

o   e.g. Sheffield Property Association, South Yorkshire MCA

·       Identifying education resources for Learn Sheffield.

·       Finding and sharing economic research.

·       University: Roots & Futures project.

·       Website: group listings, events, documents.

6.6

In response to a public question, Robin Hughes stated that evaluation figure of 240 million pounds for Sheffield heritage was based on the figure of approximately 36 billion pounds in the heritage sector for England (according to Historic England).