Heritage at Risk
Historic England's register of places in poor repair
Heritage at Risk is Historic England's register of designated historic places at risk from neglect, decay or unsympathetic change. It covers listed buildings, scheduled monuments, conservation areas, registered parks and gardens, battlefields and wreck sites. The register records condition; the underlying designation, such as listing, controls what can be altered. Heritage at Risk is an England register; the other UK nations record buildings at risk through their own schemes.
What This Means
Living in the property is not restricted by the register. The entry tells you the fabric is failing and that repairs are needed. After completion, paying for them is your problem. If the building is listed, those repairs need listed building consent where they affect its character. An entry is lifted once the asset is repaired and its future secured. This is one of the few things on this report that lenders and insurers price directly: a lender may hold back part of the loan, a retention, until the repairs are done.
Practical Advice
- Ask your conveyancer to obtain the Heritage at Risk entry and confirm whether it names this property or a neighbouring asset.
- Commission a full building survey from a surveyor experienced in historic buildings, with a costed schedule of repairs.
- Ask the council's conservation officer whether an Urgent Works Notice or Repairs Notice has ever been served on the building.
- Ask your mortgage lender whether it will impose a retention until the repairs are complete.
- Ask your broker for a buildings insurer that handles listed and historic property and full reinstatement rebuild cost.
Key Points
- The register covers every Grade I and Grade II* listed building, but Grade II buildings only in London. Most Grade II listed homes elsewhere never appear on it, though councils keep their own local lists.
- Approved alterations to a listed dwelling were zero-rated for VAT until October 2012. Repairs and alterations are standard-rated now, so budget 20% on top of the builder's quote.
Additional Information
The report shows whether the property is on the register and its condition rating: very bad, poor or fair. On the register entry itself, a building also carries a priority category from A to F. That shows how close Historic England judges a workable solution to be.