Developing a Management Plan for the Ironbridge Gorge World Heritage Site

Home , Bridgnorth, Coalport, Ironbridge, Ironbridge Gorge, Ironbridge Institute

Archaeology and the National Park Idea: Challenges for Management and Interpretation

Marion Blockley

y the end of the eighteenth century, Coalbrookdale in Shropshire was famous. It had one of the largest ironworks in England—an en- terprise symbolized by the renowned Iron Bridge, the first such Bstructure ever built on a large scale (Figure 1). Abraham Darby’s Coalbrookdale Company pioneered the mass production of iron following the breakthrough in coke smelting in 1709. The ironmasters of the East Shrop- shire Coalfield went on to make the first iron wheels, rails, boat, aqueduct, and steam locomotive, as well as early steam cylinders. The great Iron Bridge was a key step in the use of iron in construction, and has become a universal symbol of the Industrial Revolution. Other industries, based on locally sour- ced materials, an industrialised working population, an advantageous transport network, and local entrepreneurs, also prospered. Coalport China (Fig- ure 2) and decorative tile ware in particular gained an international reputa- tion.

Figure 1. The Ironbridge reflected in the River Severn. The bridge is currently swathed in scaffolding for a repaint. The Institute is using the opportunity for a detailed survey and record of the structure.

Volume 16 ¥ Number 4 1999 107 Archaeology and the National Park Idea: Challenges for Management and Interpretation

Figure 2. Bottle kilns at the former Coalport China Works, now a museum. Part of the site has been converted into a youth hostel for visiting school groups. This site illustrates the difficulties of physical access to historic buildings. The circular footings of the middle kiln raise the debate over restoration and reconstruction of historic monuments. But this prosperity gradually the Ironbridge Gorge Museum ebbed away, and so did the popula- Trust. Other buildings and areas tion. As people moved away to find were protected under the powers of new jobs, buildings fell into disre- the planning acts. pair. By the time the New Town In 1986, the international impor- (later to be named Telford) was cre- tance of the area was recognised by ated in 1963, the Ironbridge Gorge UNESCO through its designation as had become an industrial backwater, a cultural World Heritage Site. This but many monuments to early in- followed a nomination by the U.K. dustry survived. From the late government, which is a party to the 1960s, the furnaces and other major World Heritage Convention. This industrial archaeological sites were provides for the identification, pro- directly protected and managed by tection, conservation, and presenta-

108 The George Wright FORUM Archaeology and the National Park Idea: Challenges for Management and Interpretation tion of cultural and natural sites of the first time a unified framework for outstanding universal value. management of this unique asset. A prerequisite for World Heritage status is the existence of effective le- A management plan is also needed gal protection and the establishment to satisfy the U.K.’s obligations un- of a management plan to ensure the der the World Heritage Convention. site’s conservation and presentation. UNESCO, through its subsidiary In the U.K., legal protection is bodies, the International Centre for achieved through controls such as the Study of the Preservation and the listing of buildings and schedul- Restoration of Cultural Property ing of ancient monuments, the estab- (ICCROM), and the International lishment of conservation areas, and Council on Monuments and Sites by the outstanding international im- (ICOMOS), has produced a set of portance of the site being taken into management guidelines for cultural account as a key consideration by World Heritage Sites. These guide- local planning authorities. A man- lines stress the importance of long- agement plan enables all the agencies and short-term management plans to involved with the World Heritage resolve conflicts and protect the Site to co-ordinate their activities and cultural value of each site. The or- helps ensure that the site is managed ganisation of the Ironbridge Gorge to the highest possible standards. management plan reflects the guidelines published by UNESCO. The Need for a Management Plan It is intended that the manage- The Ironbridge Gorge today is a ment plan will provide an overall scenic cultural landscape, but its framework of objectives and actions former industrial character has been for the site, but it is not in itself a concealed by the natural regenera- statutory document. It does not tion of the landscape. The tenure of confer any new powers; it can only the land is complex: the Gorge has advise, inform, and promote. Each an existing residential community of individual agency has its own set of over 3,500, and receives 800,000 aims and priorities, but it is intended visitors annually. The management that the plan will help to foster effec- plan is intended to guide the long- tive partnerships (Table 1) to make and short-term management of this best use of scarce resources. The complex landscape. It will be a management plan can only operate working document that will com- with the direct support and co-op- plement the existing programmes of eration of all the agencies, and of the the responsible agencies, and foster many individual residents and users partnership work by establishing for of the site.

Volume 16 ¥ Number 4 1999 109 Archaeology and the National Park Idea: Challenges for Management and Interpretation

Table 1. Key partners in the development of the Ironbridge Gorge management plan

Telford & Wrekin Council Local planning authorities Shropshire County Council Bridgnorth District Council English Heritage Advisor to the government on heritage policy Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust Established 1968; manages most of the key industrial monuments Severn Gorge Countryside Trust Established 1991; owns and manages most of the countryside throughout the World Heritage Site Ironbridge Institute University of Birmingham Environment Agency Department of Culture, Media and Sport ICOMOS UK

The aim of the management plan • Encourage the integration of dif- is to: ferent agencies’ management and • Express the special significance maintenance programmes set of the Ironbridge Gorge World clear objectives and high stan- Heritage Site; dards of management for future • Encourage public discussion and action in the World Heritage Site; and commitment; • • Balance the many and varied in- Establish a context for research, terests and pressures in the funding, and bidding. Gorge; To fulfil this brief, a number of • Establish a clear and sustainable task groups were set up to look at framework for the future man- themes and areas of work identified agement of the World Heritage by the inter-agency group as impor- Site; tant to developing a management • Coordinate existing policies for strategy for the Gorge. Officers from the conservation and manage- different agencies worked together ment of the World Heritage Site, and produced a series of short re- and review and widen their ports. These working papers pro- scope as necessary; vided a framework within which the 110 The George Wright FORUM Archaeology and the National Park Idea: Challenges for Management and Interpretation core team could develop ideas and about the upkeep of buildings within strategies. There has been a large the World Heritage Site and about amount of source material for the the key role played by the bridges core team to draw on in the prepara- over the river in linking communities tion of the plan. The material covers throughout the Gorge. Many people a broad range of subjects, including felt that to facilitate good decisions archaeology and historical develop- about the management of the World ment, planning and transport policy, Heritage Site, all those who work woodland and countryside manage- and live in the Gorge should have ment, and ecology, and reports on access to the fullest information. A tourism and land instability. key aim of the management plan is to In June 1997, a consultation both inform and involve the local document was published. Based on community. The lead agencies have key issues that reflected the areas signed up to: where damage to the special qualities • Conserve the industrial heritage of the World Heritage Site could oc- in its distinctive semi-natural cur, the Ironbridge Gorge Initiative landscape; also highlighted the commitment to • Interpret it as a whole for a wide partnership working between the public; agencies. A copy was circulated to • Contribute actively to the eco- every home in the Gorge, to all the nomic, social, and environmental Friends of the Museum, and was quality of a diverse community; publicised widely. Three hundred • Work together to achieve high pre-paid responses were received; standards; 89% of respondents fully supported • Protect the heritage while en- the stated aims and actions. suring that, wherever possible, it The content of the first draft of remains accessible to all; and the management plan is based on the • Actively engage people and consensus achieved by the key man- agencies in the management of aging agencies in producing the the Gorge for present and future Ironbridge Gorge Initiative, and re- generations. flects the priorities and issues ex- pressed during the consultation. The Statement of Significance consultation responses endorsed the —World Heritage Values proposal that there must be a more The identification of the Iron- integrated approach to management bridge Gorge as a site of cultural sig- of the World Heritage Site. Trans- nificance forms the raison d’être of port-related issues were high on the the management plan. To ensure that agenda of respondents. Local resi- the special value of the site is not di- dents were particularly concerned minished, there must be an under-

Volume 16 ¥ Number 4 1999 111 Archaeology and the National Park Idea: Challenges for Management and Interpretation standing of why the site needs careful Industrial Revolution for the stewardship and management many thousands of visitors who through the implementation of a are attracted to the area each management plan. The Ironbridge year. Gorge was inscribed as a World Re-assessing Values Heritage Site in 1986. UNESCO Since the inscription of the Iron- measured the Gorge against six crite- bridge Gorge as a World Heritage ria that assessed the universal signifi- Site, appreciation of its importance cance and cultural importance of the has evolved. Whilst the above rea- area. These were identified as com- sons for designation have retained pelling reasons for its designation their force, it is the total landscape under four of the criteria: and what it contains and represents • The discovery of coke iron in that is now seen increasingly as its 1709 by Abraham Darby, and singular distinguishing feature. The the first successful large-scale Gorge is a unique landscape of sites structural use of cast iron in the and monuments, buildings and Iron Bridge of 1779, are master- spaces, woodlands and open land, pieces of creative genius. which together manifest the proc- • The techniques embodied in esses of industrialisation in Britain these advances had worldwide and worldwide. application and were of consid- Although the Gorge must be erable international influence in viewed as a whole, it is possible to the growth of industrialisation. discern three principal dimensions • The physical evidence of the that underpin its significance: its in- historical evolution of mining, dustrial archaeological resource, its manufacturing processes, trans- historic character, and its natural en- port networks, and social proc- vironment. esses that are so much a part of The industrial archaeological the existing fabric provide a fas- resource. Specific technical innova- cinating summary of the devel- tions that occurred within the Gorge opment of an industrial region in relate particularly to the iron indus- modern times. try, but other innovations found • The dramatic topography and more general application, such as the landscape, the river, the distinc- pioneering application of the steam tive form and pattern of the set- engine. With its vital geological coin- tlements, and the presence of in- cidence of high-quality coal, iron- dustrial monuments such as the stone, and clay, the Gorge also con- Iron Bridge, combine to act as a tains important mining remains. The world-renowned symbol of the Iron Bridge itself stands as a power-

112 The George Wright FORUM Archaeology and the National Park Idea: Challenges for Management and Interpretation ful symbol of the innovative spirit retains its own identity reflecting its fostered in the area. Many of the specific historical experience. products of the Gorge were of con- The natural environment. The siderable artistic quality, whilst nature conservation value of the some, such as ceramic tiles and espe- World Heritage Site woods and open cially Coalport china, achieved inter- spaces is significant and is strength- national fame. Together, the buried ened by their overall size and diver- remains and standing historic build- sity. Several nationally designated ings and surviving products docu- sites of special scientific interest ment the evolution of the Gorge from (SSSIs) and numerous locally desig- the sparsely populated mining area of nated wildlife sites are present. An- the seventeenth century to the mixed cient semi-natural woodland and residential, manufacturing, retail, woodland on ancient sites are par- and recreational functions of today. ticularly important in the World The historic character. The Heritage Site. Many important non- combination of history, building woodland habitats are also present, materials, form and pattern of the including valuable grasslands and buildings, layout of roads and tracks, heathland. The River Severn itself and the relationship of the buildings continues to play a major role in the and routes to the river and to areas of local environment—it remains a rela- open space and woodlands gives the tively “natural” river, and is a prime Gorge a special historic character. wildlife site throughout its length. This historic fabric and the docu- The ICOMOS–ICCROM guid- mentation of the activities in the area ance suggests that the significance of stand as a very significant resource in each World Heritage Site creates im- illustrating the effects of industriali- portant “cultural values” for the pre- sation on social behaviour, values, sent day which need careful steward- and structures. Continuity of use, ship and management. These values with frequent adaptations but little have both a historical and contempo- wholesale renewal, is a recurring rary dimension. feature in the Gorge. It has resulted in the survival of a high proportion of Historical Continuity the original building fabric, and there Historical identity. The Gorge are currently seven scheduled an- has a clear identity as the “Birthplace cient monuments and 406 listed of Industry.” Its pioneering role in buildings within the World Heritage iron production and industrialisation Site. No one character dominates in is internationally recognised. The the diverse built landscape of the Iron Bridge itself is the supreme World Heritage Site and each area symbol of the Industrial Revolution.

Volume 16 ¥ Number 4 1999 113 Archaeology and the National Park Idea: Challenges for Management and Interpretation Archaeological richness. The visitor attraction in the region, at- evidence contained within the land- tracting over half a million visitors scape of the Gorge for the origins each year. It is estimated that the per and development of ironworking and annum direct and indirect economic subsequently for wider industrialisa- impact of the visitors amounts to tion is unrivalled. The survival of 1,500 full- and part-time jobs and comprehensive documentation en- £20 million spent within the Wrekin hances the importance of the remains District alone. The identity of the by providing a source for study that Gorge as the “Birthplace of Indus- is complementary to the physical re- try” provides a significant marketing source. advantage, with local industry and Rare character. The combination services playing an important role in of history; the form and pattern of the life of the community. the settlements; the dramatic topog- Educational value. Of the raphy and river landscape; the local 256,000 visitors to the Ironbridge vernacular in building forms and Gorge Museums in 1998, 60,000 materials; the relationship of build- were part of formal school groups. ings to the river, open spaces, and The infrastructure provided by the woodlands; and the intricate network Ironbridge Gorge Museum for re- of paths and roads gives the Gorge a ceiving educational groups is a key special character. It is a unique cul- aspect of the contemporary impor- tural landscape which has survived tance of the Gorge. The informal virtually intact and as such has a rare educative and learning experiences and irreplaceable value. provided by visiting the area are also of immense value, with the wider Modern Relevance ecological wealth of the area as sig- Community roots. The history, nificant as the historical associations. topography, and community life of the Gorge give the area a clear sense Ownership of place and a very strong identity. The World Heritage Site cannot This identity is appreciated locally be managed by one agency alone; for the sense of community and be- each has certain clear ownership and longing that it fosters, and is an im- management responsibilities. To portant anchor in the evolving new date ,there has been no overall inte- town and the ever-changing contem- grated plan for the Ironbridge Gorge. porary world. The management plan The local planning authority devel- will seek to underpin the vitality of opment plan remains the statutory this living community. planning framework for the area. The Economic potential. The heri- Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust is tage of the Gorge is the foremost drawing up a series of conservation

114 The George Wright FORUM Archaeology and the National Park Idea: Challenges for Management and Interpretation plans for the individual sites within ued economic vitality of the area is its ownership to ensure that each the most realistic way of assuring the monument and site is managed in a resources needed to address the four way that respects its special signifi- key issues. The successful regenera- cance and setting. The Severn Gorge tion of the Gorge over the past 30 Countryside Trust owns large areas years illustrates that continuing eco- of wooded slopes and grassland. It, nomic development can be sustain- too, is building its own portfolio of able whilst preserving and enhancing management plans for these natural the special qualities of the World sites. There are, of course, numerous Heritage Site. other commercial and domestic property owners who have repaired Preservation of Character and maintained historic buildings Character is a combination of to- and sites, and therefore have a con- pography, landscape, social history tribution to make in the management and environment, with present-day of the World Heritage Site. But the uses and communities that gives a scale and significance of this con- place its sense of identity. There has centration of land owned and man- been a hugely successful programme aged by public or charitable organi- of renovation and restoration of his- sations is notable. toric structures in the Gorge over the In an area as complex as the past 30 years, and the character of Gorge, there are many issues to be the Gorge today has a vitality that reconciled. One of the task groups was lacking then. It is not only an devised key issues for the preserva- attractive place to live, but is a place tion of the significance of the World of manufacture and commerce, as Heritage Site. These four issues—the well as an attractive recreational cen- preservation of character, visitor tre for local inhabitants and visitors. management and access, land insta- However, despite statutory protec- bility, and management of the rivers tion, there is pressure for change and their banks—formed the back- through small-scale alterations and bone of the priorities listed in the inappropriate modernisation. There Ironbridge Gorge Initiative. The are also important historic sites at the content of that document was agreed heart of the World Heritage Site that by consensus amongst those organi- remain semi-derelict, most notably at sations forming the strategy group, the former tile works in Jackfield, and and endorsed by the public consul- areas of neglected woodland and riv- tation exercise. Although the Heri- erbanks. An over-managed or “tidy- tage Lottery Fund and European ing up” approach to enhancement, Structural Funds present new op- and “over-development,” would portunities for funding, the contin- both change the special character of

Volume 16 ¥ Number 4 1999 115 Archaeology and the National Park Idea: Challenges for Management and Interpretation the area and inhibit the natural re- programmes needed to implement generation process. Recording and the management plan. understanding the resource will en- The Ironbridge Gorge Initiative sure that informed decisions are document sets out the following made and that the values of the aims: to conserve the industrial heri- World Heritage Site are protected. tage in its distinctive, semi-natural landscape; to interpret it as a whole Visitor Management and Access for a wide public; and to contribute The tourist business is estimated to the economic and social life of a to contribute in excess of £11 million diverse community. In order to a year to the local economy in the achieve these aims and address the Gorge, and has been a major factor in issues that have been listed, 18 ob- attracting the resources needed for jectives have been identified (see Ta- regeneration and conservation work. ble 2). But the environment has an intrinsic Implementing the Plan value that transcends present-day The plan is a strategic document. tourism needs. Tourism creates It will advise and influence the man- pressures for change through the agement of the World Heritage Site need for physical access to sites and as a whole, whilst site managers are landscape, the need to explain and developing individual site manage- present the heritage for the benefit of ment plans. These will show how, at all, and through the demands of a detailed level, sites can be managed transport, particularly parking and within the strategic objectives of the road improvements (Figures 3 and overall management plan. 4). The eighteen objectives identified above deal with real needs and pri- The Framework for Managing orities that are necessary for long- the World Heritage Site term conservation. The implementa- UNESCO guidelines on man- tion of these objectives will be agement plans for World Heritage achieved through the ongoing work Sites advise that the plan should be of the agencies, as individual organi- based on a 30-year time span, with zations and as partners, and the medium- and short-term objectives commitment of local people who live contained within the long-term strat- and work in the Gorge. Their “own- egy. The objectives set out here fol- ership” of the plan and an acceptance low on from the description and of the values that make the area spe- identification of key issues in the cial is essential to its success. Ironbridge Gorge World Heritage The partnership arrangement, at Site. The objectives are linked to an present an informal agreement be action plan that sets out projects and tween the agencies, can be used to

116 The George Wright FORUM Archaeology and the National Park Idea: Challenges for Management and Interpretation

Table 2. Objectives of Ironbridge Gorge Initiative

To conserve the industrial heritage in its distinctive semi-natural landscape:

1. Protect, maintain, conserve, and, where appropriate, enhance the built and natural heritage of the World Heritage Site and its setting. 2. Establish detailed policies and programmes of action, which will be reviewed annually. 3. Keep all designations under review by the appropriate authority to ensure that the most appropriate level of statutory and planning protection is in place. 4. Complete an analysis of the special character of built and natural heritage to inform future policy- and decision-making. 5. Establish practical indicators to monitor change. 6. Agree a code of practice for environmental maintenance, and foster locally the traditional craft skills needed to implement high quality projects. 7. Expand the scope of the existing visitor management strategy, and encourage appreciation of the wider environment. 8. Review the transportation strategy, including provision for pedestrians and the increasing age of visitors, and identify priorities in the local transport plan. 9. Review residents’ parking problems. 10. Devise a risk management strategy for coping with natural erosion and land instability. 11. Agree a management and interpretation strategy for the riverbanks and water courses. 12. Assess the condition and use of the existing bridges across the River Severn, and any long-term need for an additional foot or cycle crossing.

To interpret it as a whole for a wide public:

13. Encourage the establishment of a programme of archaeological research into the historic landscape of the Gorge and its environs, and make the results widely available. 14. Develop an integrated approach to interpreting the historic landscape. 15. Make use of emerging technologies to provide access to information and knowledge for visitors and local communities alike.

To contribute to the economic and social life of a diverse community:

16. Promote social and economic regeneration in and around the World Heritage Site that benefits the local residential and working community and enhances the environment. 17. Celebrate the local distinctiveness of the settlements and communities in the Gorge, and recog- nise this in the implementation of all types of projects. 18. Further involve the community in the development and implementation of the management plan and its objectives. coordinate projects to achieve maxi- schemes. It will mean more initiatives mum impact. Partnerships bring can happen at once with greater im- benefits which include access to a pact, and it gives lobbying power for wider range of funding sources and the needs of the World Heritage Site. increased chances of securing suc- The plan will have the support of cessful bids to the Heritage Lottery other organizations such as ICO- Fund and other discretionary MOS and the Department of Cul-

Volume 16 ¥ Number 4 1999 117 Archaeology and the National Park Idea: Challenges for Management and Interpretation

Figure 3. The Park and Ride bus scheme in the centre of Ironbridge has been only partially successful as a visitor management tool. Families with pushchairs and the less mobile find it difficult to use the buses and are reluctant to give up their cars.

Figure 4. More traditional forms of transport for carrying visitors around the Blists Hill Open Air Museum of relocated historic buildings. This museum is the main visitor attraction in the World Heritage Site.

118 The George Wright FORUM Archaeology and the National Park Idea: Challenges for Management and Interpretation ture, Media and Sport. If the secre- The World Heritage Site strategy tary of state is happy with the plan, group will continue to oversee the he will submit it to UNESCO on be- implementation and delivery of the half of the British government. plan. At present the agencies come The achievement of the objectives together in an interagency body listed above will be overseen by the which acts as a working group. To existing strategy group; new mecha- implement projects, closer work ar- nisms to facilitate the partner arrangements may be necessary. Indi- rangements and the need for a new vidual projects will also require spe- post of coordinator to implement the cific teams. The composition of the plan are discussed below. The action working group will be reviewed to plan that is being developed will set ensure that all interests are repre- out a short-to-medium-term (5-10 sented, including the local business years) programme of projects. It will and residential community. These indicate which agency or agencies working arrangements need to be will take the lead in implementing agreed to implement the action plan. schemes and developing strategies. A new position of coordinator is There is a need for the Ironbridge suggested to serve the working group Gorge to have a secure and sustain- and coordinate the implementation able economic base that is compati- of the action plan. The post will also ble with the conservation of the be responsible for monitoring and World Heritage Site. Securing the evaluation, carrying out a yearly re- objectives of the plan must use the view of the action plan, and antici- partnership approach to balance the pating the five-year review of the various interests and ensure that management plan itself. Similar posts World Heritage values are not di- have been created at Avebury and minished. A key part of implement- Greenwich World Heritage Sites. ing the action plan will be to achieve The officer reports to the World a standard of excellence appropriate Heritage Site working party. The to the World Heritage Site in all ar- post includes liaison with local own- eas of work from interpretation and ers and employers, maintenance of conservation through to everyday the GIS database, and identifying maintenance work. The monitoring sources of funding and bidding for and review of the action plan must grants. include an assessment of quality. The achievement of objectives The mechanisms to achieve the will be constrained by issues outside objectives are twofold: through the the scope of the plan—for example, existing working arrangements, and national planning policy or the level through the appointment of a dedi- of funding necessary to achieve the cated World Heritage Site officer. desired outcome. A greater under-

Volume 16 ¥ Number 4 1999 119 Archaeology and the National Park Idea: Challenges for Management and Interpretation standing of the potential impact of and its management arrangements by proposals on the World Heritage 2004. The success or failure of this Site will be essential to justify both plan will not be measured by the small and large changes. UNESCO quality of the document itself, but the has introduced monitoring require- process of collaborative working that ments for all World Heritage Sites, is essential for its shared ownership and in the implementation and re- and effective implementation. Only view of the plan there must be scope time will tell if this process has been to ensure a full assessment of the site successful.

Marion Blockley, Ironbridge Gorge Museum, Ironbridge, Telford, Shrop- shire TF8 7AW United Kingdom; [email protected]

120 The George Wright FORUM