Did you know that HER Officers are often called HEROs?! (Cue the Bonnie Tyler music or a bit of David Bowie…) In fact the HER Forum recently put a whole soundtrack together for us for its 21st birthday. Alright, admittedly my job title is Assistant Archaeologist (HER and Outreach), but it’s close and I’m still proud of it!
I work for West Berkshire Council’s Archaeology Service in Newbury (when there’s not a global pandemic and we’re all working from home, that is!). West Berkshire covers 51% of the ceremonial county of Berkshire. There are three of us. My manager, Sarah, is responsible for giving advice during the planning process to ensure the district’s ‘heritage assets’ are protected. My colleague, Helena, is the Portable Antiquities Scheme’s Finds Liaison Officer for the whole of Berkshire and records finds of objects made by members of the public, and I am responsible for keeping the Historic Environment Record (HER) accurate and up to date, and for outreach.
What’s an HER? Historic England published an excellent guide to them last year. They are databases of known buildings, monuments, sites, places, areas or landscapes of archaeological, architectural, artistic or historic interest. They also contain records of archaeological investigations, sources and finds within the geographical area they cover. Keeping them up to date helps ensure accurate advice is given in development management. You can access many of our HER records via the Heritage Gateway or on the Council’s Online Map(by switching on the Historic Environment layers via the Layer List in the top right corner [the middle one of the three white icons]).
Every week I check the Weekly Lists of planning applications in West Berkshire against our HER records to flag up any that Sarah hasn’t already been consulted on that might have an impact on the historic environment. If any archaeological fieldwork might need to take place on a site, I provide information on heritage assets that might be affected and on any previous work carried out in the area. This often involves enhancing the records we already have and gives me an opportunity to learn about the archaeology of an area in detail, which I really enjoy. If further fieldwork or research is carried out, I add the findings to the HER, so our records are up to date for next time. Like magpies, we collect shiny new information from any source that will help inform future advice and research!
When I’ve found something in the HER that I think other people will enjoy, I share it on Facebook and Twitter, and I’ve recently started using social media to try to crowd source information on surviving Anderson shelters, benchmarks and ghost signs too! I’ve been researching the HER for West Berkshire Museum’s Focus On: Pangbourne exhibition, which opens this week and am looking forward to running a craft activity at Pangbourne Library inspired by Bere Court’s colourful 16th century fireplace, once the lockdown has ended. In the meantime, join me on social media on 19 July and become a garden archaeologist for a day for Shaw House’s virtual Summer Fair: https://festival.archaeologyuk.org/events/design-shaw-house-garden-1593782346!
