Heritage StatementsFrom £595
How much does a heritage statement cost in London?
A heritage statement for a London application costs our fixed £595, with no VAT charged. It is the document that explains what is significant about an old building or area and how your work affects it, and national policy asks for enough detail to understand that and no more.
The short answer: one fixed fee, sized to the case
Our heritage statement costs £595. For that we research the history of the building and its street, read the list entry or conservation area appraisal, assess how your proposal affects what is significant and write the statement to go with your application. If a case turns on a specialist question outside our work, we say so.
The policy test is proportionality: a modest alteration to a terraced house in a conservation area needs a short, focused statement, and a larger scheme next to a listed building needs more. We write to the size of the issue.
- Research the history
We read the list entry or conservation area appraisal and the local historic record for the site.
- Describe the significance
The statement says what matters about the building and its setting, and why.
- Assess the effect
Each part of your proposal is tested against that significance, in plain words.
- Present it for the council
The statement is written to go with the plans in your planning or listed building application.
When you need one
Policy expects proposals affecting heritage assets to be accompanied by an assessment of the significance of the assets affected, including any contribution made by their setting. That covers listed buildings, conservation areas and sites near them.
Separately, national validation rules require a Design and Access Statement for listed building consent applications and for development in a designated area such as a conservation area that consists of one or more dwellings (guidance). Our listed building consent post shows how the pieces fit.
How much detail the policy wants
The same policy says the level of detail should be proportionate to the assets' importance and no more than is necessary to understand the potential effect of the proposal on their significance. The relevant historic environment record should be referred to in making the assessment.
That is why a longer statement is not a better one. A statement padded with general history of the borough tells the officer nothing about your house. We aim for the shortest text that answers the question the council will ask.
What the council must weigh
For a listed building the council must have special regard to the desirability of preserving the building or its setting, and in a conservation area special attention shall be paid to the desirability of preserving or enhancing the character or appearance of that area. Policy adds that substantial weight should be given to an asset's conservation, and the more important the asset, the greater the weight.
A heritage statement is where you meet those tests head on. If the building is of lesser significance, say so and show why your change is acceptable. If a feature is important, show how you have kept it. Either way it should not claim more than the evidence supports.
Where it sits in the budget
A listed building project has three parts: our consent drawings from £1,895, this statement, and any planning application the work also needs. Our heritage statement page shows the service in detail, and our post on appeals shows where a statement can help if a refusal comes.
For work in a conservation area that does not involve a listed building, a statement with your drawings is the heritage side of the application. We tell you at the start which you need.
Sources
Every figure in this article, where it comes from and a link to the original.
- including any contribution made by their setting: NPPF (29 September 2026) policy HE5(1): (source wording: "an assessment of the significance of the assets affected (including any contribution made by their setting)"). www.gov.uk
- should be proportionate to the assets' importance: NPPF (29 September 2026) policy HE5(1): (source wording: "The level of detail should be proportionate to the assets' importance"). www.gov.uk
- no more than is necessary to understand the potential effect of the proposal on their significance: NPPF (29 September 2026) policy HE5(1): (source wording: "no more than is necessary to understand the potential effect of the proposal on their significance"). www.gov.uk
- The relevant historic environment record should be referred to: NPPF (29 September 2026) policy HE5(1): (source wording: "The relevant historic environment record should be referred to in making this assessment"). www.gov.uk
- special regard to the desirability of preserving the building or its setting: Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 s66(1): (source wording: "shall have special regard to the desirability of preserving the building or its setting"). www.legislation.gov.uk
- special attention shall be paid to the desirability of preserving or enhancing the character or appearance: Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 s72(1): (source wording: "special attention shall be paid to the desirability of preserving or enhancing the character or appearance of that area"). www.legislation.gov.uk
- substantial weight should be given to an asset's conservation: NPPF (29 September 2026) policy HE6(1): (source wording: "substantial weight should be given to the asset's conservation"). www.gov.uk
Questions people ask
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Photographs: Rohan Gangopadhyay (Unsplash License); William Dmytrow (Unsplash License).
Heritage Statements: a fixed fee from £595
Read more on the heritage statements service page, or send your address below and we reply within one working day.
Heritage Statements
from £595
Every price is the full fixed fee you pay. No VAT is charged. Council application fees are paid to the council separately.
What you get
- Research into the history of the building and its setting
- An assessment of significance written for your case
- A test of each part of your proposal against that significance
- A statement ready to go with the application
- A clear note if the case needs a specialist report we do not cover