Do you live near one? Interactive map reveals the locations of England's 400,000 heritage sites

Release time：2024-05-22 10:38:23 Source：Stellar Stories news portal

With the humdrum of modern life, it's easy for Brits to forget that we live in a land packed with ancient monuments and rich history. 

In fact, England alone is has about 400,000 Grade-listed buildings, scheduled monuments, protected parks and UNESCO World Heritage Sites. 

And they're not just nice to look at, as new research from Historic England shows that day-to-day encounters with these spots boost wellbeing and 'life satisfaction'. 

Now, an incredible interactive map from the organisation shows where the nearest ones are to you in the country. 

It includes the world-famous Stonehenge, the Roman defensive fortification Hadrian's Wall and the Jurassic Coast, noted for its rich reserves of geological history and dinosaur remains.

Historic England's interactive map marks out the numerous Grade-listed buildings in England, Scotland and Wales with little blue pins, as well as parks and gardens, scheduled monuments and World Heritage Sites. Pictured, grade-listed buildings in London

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Historic England's interactive map marks out the numerous Grade-listed buildings in England with little blue pins. 

There are so many that if you pop to the shops, chances are you're going to pass one on your way. 

All three categories all included – Grade I (buildings of the highest significance), Grade II* (particularly important buildings of more than special interest) and Grade II (buildings that are of special interest). 

There are hundreds of thousands of Grade-listed buildings in England, but some of the most famous Grade I examples are Windsor Castle, Hampton Court Palace and Tower Bridge. 

Meanwhile, those in the Grade II* category include Battersea Power Station, the Coliseum Theatre and Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral, while Grade II includes treasures like Abbey Road Studios and BT Tower.

All these buildings are considered nationally important and therefore have extra legal protection, although they're not all preserved as museums and people do live in them. 

Most listed building owners are likely to live in a Grade II building as these make up 92 per cent of all listed buildings, Historic England says. 

Hadrian's Wall is a spectacular UNESCO World Heritage Site, stretching for 73 miles – coast to coast

Jurassic Coast between Devon and Dorset (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) is noted for its rich reserves of geological history and dinosaur remains

Hampton Court Palace on the outskirts of London was begun by Cardinal Wolsey in the early 16th century for Henry VIII

Battersea Power Station is pictured following its recent £9 billion renovation. The iconic building was decommissioned in 1983

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Meanwhile, scheduled monuments – nationally important archaeological sites or historic buildings – are shaded in red on the map. 

Examples include Stonehenge in Wiltshire, Cranmore Castle in Devon and even Surbiton railway station, noted for its striking modernist façade. 

The map also shows heritage-listed parks and gardens – such as Richmond Park in London and Philips Park in Manchester – are shaded in green. 

In the same way as historic buildings are categorised, England's parks and gardens are graded I, II and II.  

Lastly, World Heritage Sites – a special global designation given by the UN for places that are of 'outstanding value to humanity' – are shaded in yellow. 

There are 33 World Heritage Sites in the UK and British Overseas Territories, including Stonehenge, the Tower of London, the Lake District, Oxfordshire's Blenheim Palace and the entire city of Bath. 

The map does not include heritage sites of Wales and Scotland, as these are overseen by two different organisations –Cadw and Historic Environment Scotland, respectively. 

As with the positive impact of green spaces on wellbeing, the very presence of nearby historic places benefits quality of life, Historic England's new study reveals. 

In the same way as historic buildings are categorised, England's parks and gardens are graded I, II* and II. The map shows Bradgate Park in Leicestershire

Stonehenge in Wiltshire is both a scheduled monument and a World Heritage Sites. There are also Grade II-listed milestones at the site

Bath (pictured) in Somerset is the only city in the UK to be a designated World Heritage Site in its entirety

Using a mechanism designed by the Treasury, the study put a monetary value on this heritage benefit, called a 'wellbeing value', of £29 billion every year in England. 

'For the first time, we have robust economic evidence that heritage makes a significant contribution to people's quality of life,' said Lord Neil Mendoza, chairman of Historic England.

'We all value the role that green spaces play in ensuring wellbeing.

'This new ground-breaking research shows us that the everyday local heritage found in towns and cities across England plays a comparable and valuable role.' 

The interactive map and the new study are available to view on the Historic England website.

Can't demolish a protected building? Just build on top of it! Row over plans for new 300-home 440ft skyscraper to straddle Grade II-listed former hospital in Birmingham 

Remarkable plans have been submitted to build a massive 440ft skyscraper on top of a former hospital as the listed building isn't allowed to be demolished.

The proposals for the former Royal Orthopaedic Hospital in Birmingham have divided opinion, with some hailing them as 'beautiful' while others fume over 'outrageous scheme'.

Developers want to build a 42-storey apartment building above the Georgian era building, which was most recently used as a nightclub and fell into disrepair after it closed in 2020.

Artists' impressions submitted with the application show how the original building will be maintained, but will have the giant structure containing 300 flats raised above it on supports.

Read more 

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