Agenda item

To receive the presentation by Clive Carter, on the proposals for becoming a World Heritage Site (WHS).

RECEIVED the report of Duncan Wilson, APP Chief Executive, on the SAC/CC recommendation that World Heritage Site (WHS) status should be pursued by Alexandra Palace, attaching the proposal document prepared by Mr Clive Carter.

AGREED that standing orders be suspended at 7.30pm to enable Mr Carter to address the Committee for a maximum of seven minutes.

Mr Carter presented the proposal, set out in the agenda pack, that the Board, supported by the Council, should seek UNESCO World Heritage Site gift-of-inscription for the South East wing of Alexandra Palace. Mr Carter reported that the campaign was receiving significant support; there was a valid and enduring public interest in the site as the birthplace of television. It was felt that wider awareness and appreciation would increase the ability to protect and preserve the site. It was reported that modern history was already starting to be reflected in the WHS list in the form of the UK’s industrial heritage, and communications had been acknowledged at Varberg, Sweden. Television heritage should be the next to be recognised, and Alexandra Palace was a site of global significance. Details regarding the proposal were set out in Mr Carter’s document, including the high profile endorsements of the campaign received; Mr Carter had also received support from broadcaster Melvyn Bragg, not included in the documentation. The broad range of supporters demonstrated that the strategic goal of attaining WHS status for the site was right.

Mr Carter acknowledged Duncan Wilson’s covering report as an appropriate response to the proposal document and asked the Board:

i)                    To endorse the proposal as a strategic goal for Alexandra Palace;

ii)                  That the South East wing should be reserved for a facility as a UNESCO WHS, and any developments surrounding the edge of this site should bear this goal in mind;

iii)                That a Committee be established to take this proposal forward.

Duncan Wilson addressed the Board, and advised that the regeneration project currently in progress was broadly aligned with this proposal. A masterplan was required for the Palace as a whole, and it was felt most appropriate that the studios should be considered in the light of this overarching, strategic process.

• In response to a question from the Board, Mr Carter confirmed that his proposal was for the South East wing only to be listed as a WHS, as the only element of the site which would qualify in respect of its significance for television heritage.
• The Chair thanked Mr Carter for the amount of work he had put into this proposal; the Board recognised that the current approach to regeneration was now heritage-led, and this was very different to the previous approach.
• In response to a request for clarification of what was meant by “the application would not progress easily without reform both in finance and in governance” under the ‘risks’ section of the report; Mr Carter advised that it had been hoped that there would be a change in governance arrangements to include independent Board Members. He was disappointed that this no longer seemed to be a prospect, but felt that the proposal remained strong, independent of governance arrangements. The Chair stated that everyone would welcome greater independent representation on the Board, and that this should be an aspiration for the short term.
• In response to a question regarding the cautious tone adopted by English Heritage, Mr Carter reported that they had a duty to remain neutral in respect of WHS applications, and may also be discouraging applications in the context of an over-representation of Western European sites on the WHS list. Mr Carter felt, however, that the nature of Alexandra Palace as a site whose merits were non-political, non-religious and technical, meant that it was likely to be accepted.
• The Board was advised that the cited cost of £0.5m was an estimate based on the average cost of an application; this cost would be for the submission of a bid to go on the UNESCO Tentative List. Some concern was expressed regarding diverting resources from delivery of the regeneration project; in response, Duncan Wilson advised that a suite of documents would be produced as part of the regeneration project, many of which could subsequently be incorporated into a bid for WHS status, such as the Heritage Management Plan, 80% of the cost of which was to be met by English Heritage.
• Duncan Wilson advised that the technical difficulties associated with WHS bids for cultural and scientific sites, previously highlighted by English Heritage, were the very issues that would need to be considered as part of the regeneration project over the next few months. Delivery of the regeneration project was identified as the main priority for the Palace.

AGREED that standing orders be reintroduced at 8pm.

RESOLVED

i)                    that the Board endorse the proposal that seeking UNESCO World Heritage Site status for the South East wing of Alexandra Palace should be a strategic goal for the Trust.

ii)                  That an update on the WHS bid progress be reported to the Board on a 6-monthly basis under the Regeneration agenda item.

NOTED that the regeneration project would incorporate the South East wing and how this was to be preserved going forward. The long-term goal of attaining WHS status would be taken into account as part of this process. It was felt that the establishment of a committee to work on the WHS bid was unnecessary and would impact on resources available for the delivery of the regeneration project.