Indicator: NCH-06 Physical condition and integrity of a sample of historic heritage places

Data

Condition and integrity of historic heritage*
Australia - 2000-2004
	Sample number 2000	Percentage of sample 2000 (%)	Sample number 2004	Percentage of sample 2004 (%)	Percentage change between 2000 and 2004 samples (%)
Survey sample size	1218		1257		+3.1
Integrity
High	510	41.9	477	37.9	-4.0
Medium	603	49.5	690	54.9	+5.4
Low	105	8.6	90	7.2	-1.4

Condition
Good	538	44.2	561	44.6	+0.4
Fair	611	50.2	608	48.4	-1.8
Poor	69	5.7	88	7.0	+1.3
*The places destroyed in both periods are not represented in this table.

Source: Pearson, M and Marshall, D 2006, Study of Condition and Integrity of Historic Heritage Places for the 2006 State of the Environment Report, Department of the Environment and Heritage, Canberra, viewed N/A, [hyperlink to report on final SoE website].

Trends in Condition and Integrity of a sample of historic heritage places surveyed in 2000 and 2004
Historic heritage condition	2000	2004
Commercial premises in urban centres and regional towns	Good condition; but exteriors have high integrity; Interiors: low	Same trend: historical associations and functional significance much diminished
Prominent buildings in rural towns		Adapted by retail chains, especially clothing
Prominent buildings in cities and regional towns		Increasing number subject to facadism: converting to 'modern' retail standards
Vacant places	42% of those surveyed	Same %
Places subject to conservation works	Undertaken prior to 2000	Increasing deterioration due to no maintenance
Affluent regional centres, including coastal towns		Increasing land values threatening heritage integrity
Former government buildings	Many empty	Streetscape value maintained but modifications destroyed individual heritage integrity
Heritage listed places as a class fare better	Need for more systematic survey	Obligations placed on planning approvals to consider heritage
Heritage listing of places has not been systematic	Minimal protection at the local government level	Listings but many councils are overtly pro-development
Redundant rural buildings of heritage value	Noted as problem	True scale and extent of this problem still not known
Government buildings remains at risk	Echuca railway engine shed, Burra railway station and Rockhampton Post Office	Customs House Williamstown, Ararat Mental Hospital, Townsville Customs House, State Government Printing Office in Perth
Churches: highest integrity and best class of heritage place	Conservation problems developing, such as water penetration	Trend of ageing church fabric and inadequate maintenance funds continued; increasing redundancy
Subdivision of church land		Continuing trend impairing curtilage values
Masonry of heritage buildings	Painting: to detriment of heritage values and degrades integrity	Trend continues
Provision of interpretative information		Ranges from zero to good: Qld Heritage Trails
Interpretative material installed as part of conservation works	Deterioration observed in signage	Continuing trend: town streetscape panels and historic route panels are 'tatty and tired'

Places noted as destroyed or removed from historic heritage place registers because of loss of values, Australia - 1995-2000 and 2001-2005 (based on State and Territory registers and the Register of the National Estate)
Register ^A	ACT	NSW	NT	Qld	SA	Tas	Vic	WA	Ext. Terr./ AAD	Total
State and Territory heritage registers
1995-2000	1	nd	nd	10	6	0	nd	1	2	20
2001-2005	10			16 ^C	13 ^D	22		9
Register of the National Estate (historic) ^B
1995-2000	0	6	11	12	4	3	9	9	0	54
2001-2005 ^E	1	3		1	8		5	6		24

^A The Register of the National Estate and State and Territory registers could overlap, so the two sets of figures cannot be added for a total figure.
^B these places noted as damaged / destroyed but not necessarily removed from RNE
^C by year
^D up to 2004
^E data for the period 1/9/03-31/12/04

Sources: State / Territory heritage agencies; Heritage Division, Department of the Environment and Heritage

What the data mean

The Study of Condition and Integrity of Historic Heritage Places, in the form of a physical survey of a proportion of the places entered in the Register of the National Estate and the various State heritage registers, was conducted in 2004. In all 1,287 places were inspected.

The Study repeated (with some modifications) the survey first undertaken for the 2001 State of the Environment Report and trends apparent over the intervening five-year period were identified.

The study found relatively little change in the condition or integrity of the survey sample over the period since the last survey. Some identified trends were:

the same proportion of places in 2000 and 2004 having at least medium integrity and fair condition (87.6%)
a slight increase in the proportion of places with both high integrity and good condition (+2.4%)
a slight decrease in the number of vacant places (5.7% down to 4.9%)
a significant increase in the percentage of vacant places in poor condition (39% up to 50%)

The study also showed a number of trends in condition and integrity of then sampled heritage places.

Data Limitations

The survey covered every state and territory, and included as wide a regional coverage as the existing heritage registers allow, with a particular emphasis on an equal spread of places in rural and urban environments. The survey provides a simple overview of the continued existence, condition, integrity and use of a sample of the nation’s historic heritage, and allows trends in the health of that heritage to be identified.

Issues for which this is an indicator and why

Natural and Cultural Heritage — Condition and Integrity of heritage - Physical condition and integrity of heritage

One of the fundamental questions relating to heritage is the condition and integrity of heritage items. A sample is the best available surrogate for the measure of the condition and integrity of historic heritage on a national scale.

Other indicators for this issue:

Key

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State of the Environment

2006