Heritage as a Vehicle for Development: The Case of Bigg Market, Newcastle upon Tyne

ABSTRACT

In this paper we examine the way conservation-planning has changed since the global economic crisis in Newcastle upon Tyne (UK), where austerity is still an all-consuming issue. Focusing upon a recent project around the Bigg Market, a historic public space, we map the new ‘conservation-planning assemblage’ where ‘other-than-public' forms of management have taken hold. We identify impacts of austerity, deregulation and a smaller state ideology, and show how the agency of heritage assets and narratives in urban context is focussed on economic performance and competitiveness. Within the conservation-planning assemblage, roles and responsibilities have changed, and we reflect on the impact this has on conservation policy and practice.

KEYWORDS:

• Urban governance
• heritage
• conservation-planning
• austerity
• business improvement district
• Newcastle upon Tyne

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. The project was developed within the framework of the 2012 NPPF, so we use this for the paper. The recently published NPPF 2019 remains broadly unchanged.

2. As normal for English BIDs, NE1 is funded by a compulsory additional levy on property tax (business rates). In 2018 NE1 secured its third five-year term (2019–2024) by the required vote of local business (NE1, 2018b).

3. On listed buildings that are not in use, the owners do not pay rates.

Additional information

Funding

This research was funded as part of the project 'PICH' (The impact of urban planning and governance reform on the historic built environment and intangible cultural heritage) under the JPI Cultural Heritage, ‘Heritage Plus Joint Call’, through the Dutch National Research Organisation (NWO) and the Research Council of Norway [249602/E50].