Seven heritage assets saved in Cornwall National Landscape

The National Lottery Heritage Funded project ‘A Monumental Improvement’ has successfully supported the removal of seven scheduled monuments in Cornwall National Landscape from Historic England’s Heritage At Risk Register for 2024.

‘A Monumental Improvement’ is a five-year project seeking to ensure that 40 scheduled monuments in Cornwall National Landscape are better identified, supported and enjoyed by a wide range of people by March 2025, with one of the key outputs of the project to remove as many sites from the Heritage At Risk Register as possible. The project is also part-funded by Historic England.

Heritage sites in the project include Iron Age hill forts, Neolithic settlements as well as Medieval motte and bailey castles. Some sites have iconic associations with the writer Daphne Du Maurier, composer Richard Wagner as well as many myths and legends in Cornwall, making them unrivalled for their national uniqueness.

The monuments within the project being removed following successful conservation include Fox Tor Stone Alignment, Bearah Common Cist, Emblance Downs Stone Circles and King Arthur’s Hall, all located on Bodmin Moor.  Also being removed are three of the five 18^th century redoubts (a type of fortification) located at Maker Heights, Rame Head.  Furthermore, the Iron Age hill fort of Castle Dore and the Medieval motte and bailey of Kilkhampton Castle will also be removed.

Success at these sites has resulted from incredible dedication of volunteers who have supported multiple conservation repairs, vegetation clearances and outreach events carried out either at or near the scheduled monuments. Furthermore, the continued support of the landowners and stakeholders involved at the monuments has shown a consistent desire to enhance heritage sites within our protected landscape.

Our Monumental Improvement Project Partnership, which includes representatives from Historic England, The National Trust, Cornwall Heritage Trust, Cornwall Archaeological Society and Cornwall Council brings a wealth of expertise and has been instrumental in shaping the plans to conserve and protect these sites.

Monument Improvement Project Manager Amy McElhinney stated “The Monumental Improvement Project aims to secure a sustainable future for the scheduled monuments within the project, with removal from the Heritage at Risk register being the ultimate goal. Historic England’s announcement that seven sites will be removed from the heritage at risk register this year is a testament to the hard work and dedication of the project’s volunteers, as well as to the continued support of our project partners and funders, including The National Lottery Heritage Fund. The future is looking bright today for Heritage at Risk in Cornwall National Landscape and we aim to see even more sites removed from the register in 2025!”

Ross Simmonds, South West Regional Director at Historic England, said: “Securing seven historic sites for the future is a wonderful achievement. Cornwall National Landscape, along with all the volunteers, landowners and many other partners involved, can be proud of their work to secure these special places for the future”.

Discover more about the Monumental Improvement project and the other sites being protected in Cornwall National Landscape below

This article was featured in The Cornishman, Cornish Guardian and West Britton on the 12th of December 2024.