The next meeting of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Civic Societies, which has the Civic Voice as its secretariat, is organised by the Steering Group of the newly established Historic Cathedral Cities Alliance (HCCA) and will take place on Tuesday 8 March in Portcullis House, Westminster, exploring ‘Balancing Heritage and Growth’.
The Civic voice writes:
The focus of the meeting will be on historic towns and cathedral cities; with the Historic Cathedral Cities Alliance (HCCA) helping Civic Voice organise the event.
The HCCA, which was launched last October at the Civic Voice Annual Convention in Bristol, is a response to concerns held by several civic societies across the country. The Alliance’s aim is to address the tension between the current drive for development and the need to conserve and protect historic towns and cities.
The HCCA has gained considerable interest, which is reflected in the fact that the next APPG for Civic Societies is devoting its March meeting to these concerns. Speakers at the APPG will include Griff Rhys Jones, Duncan McCallum of Historic England, and Richard Bate, author of a major report on The Sustainable Growth of Cathedral Cities and Historic Towns. Other participants will include Baroness Andrews and Jonathan Foyle.
The meeting will be an opportunity to hear about the current threats to historic towns and cities, to compare local experience with the national picture and to discuss what can be done to protect our heritage. After the formal meeting of the APPG, there will be a less formal meeting of the HCCA at which representatives of civic societies can discuss the way in which this new organisation should develop.
The aim of the HCCA is to set up a network of individuals and organisations to:
- Use twice-yearly meetings and social media as an information exchange to share ideas about the challenges facing historic towns and cities.
- Consider and publicise a variety of solutions to the challenges identified.
- Represent these cities and give them more power to shape their future, in ways which protect their heritage.
A Planning Group has been set up to develop the HCCA. The Planning Group includes: David Evans (Chester), Ian Green (Oxford), Noel James (Historic Towns Forum), Jan Pahl (Convenor; Canterbury), David Turnock (Peterborough), John Walker (Deputy Convenor; Civic Voice), Chris Winter (Wells).
Speakers at the APPG will include Griff Rhys-Jones, Duncan McCallum of Historic England, and Richard Bate, author of a major report on The Sustainable Growth of Cathedral Cities and Historic Towns. Other participants will include Baroness Andrews and Jonathan Foyle.
The meeting is being organised by the Steering Group of the Historic Cathedral Cities Alliance (HCCA).
The HCCA brings together civic societies which are concerned about these issues, working under the umbrella of Civic Voice, and with financial support from the All Churches Trust. This will be an opportunity to hear about the current threats to historic towns and cities, to bring together relevant evidence and to begin to develop an action plan to help conserve and protect our heritage.
The HCCA is a network of individuals and organisations which aims to:
- Share ideas about the challenges facing historic towns and cities, through information exchange by social media and twice-yearly meetings
- Consider and publicise a variety of solutions to the challenges identified
- Represent these cities and give them more power to shape their futures in ways which protect their heritage
The programme will involve:
1.00 Registration, refreshments and displays
2.00 Introduction by Craig McKinlay, chair of the APPG
Comments by Griff Rhys-Jones, President of Civic Voice
Talks by Duncan McCallum (Historic England) and Richard Bate (Green Balance)
Discussion
4.00 Refreshments
4.30 Informal meeting of HCCA to discuss the future of the organisation
Anyone who is interested will be very welcome.
For further information, Historic England has produced, an interesting document surrounding this subject, titled The Sustainable Growth of Cathedral Cities and Historic Towns, commissioned to look at the implication of proposed development on cathedral cities and historic towns, some of our most precious places. It is available at http://civicvoice.us5.list-manage.com/track/click?u=5128291c803f66657704671f8&id=54d918c6ed&e=78636f19e5
The event is free but it is essential to register in advance, for security reasons, so if you would like to attend register.
