Date:
Location: Great Britain
This award — a joint venture between the SAH Great Britain and the Institute of Historic Building Conservation (IHBC) — recognises and celebrates the quality of architectural-historical research produced by colleagues in heritage and conservation practice, as private consultants or on behalf of Non-Governmental Organisations, public bodies or comparable clients.
Applied research undertaken for statements of significance, conservation management plans, listing, other forms of statutory protection, and to directly inform decision making in the planning and wider heritage sphere makes a significant, but all too often under-recognised contribution to the discipline and indeed to the quality of the historic environment. Moreover, methodological reflection on this work, and on heritage and preservationism more widely, adds much to the practice of architectural history. Our Heritage Research Award will provide an opportunity to understand better the diversity of this work, celebrate the very best of the research that goes into it, and make it better known to other professionals and the public.
The Award celebrates research and critical reflection. It excludes specifically consideration, assessment or endorsement of any plans, projects, sites, advocacy or arbitration etc. linked in ANY way to the research, or the success, merits, demerits or otherwise of resulting advice, decisions or interventions. This separation between research and conservation outcomes mirrors the separation that the IHBC recognises between the advice given by an IHBC member to a client or employer and the potential decisions and outcomes that ultimately may be associated with that advice.
Winning work will receive a medallion, to be presented at the SAHGB’s Annual Awards Ceremony. Winners will also be offered a free place at the corresponding IHBC Annual School. Additionally, we may contact winning researchers to request a feature for publishing on the Society’s website or members’ magazine.
Independent researchers, practices, heritage consultancies, amenity societies, relevant departments of religious bodies, and non-departmental public bodies are all invited to submit or nominate work that demonstrates significant and original work and that develops our understanding of the built environment.
We are looking for two broad categories of research:
CATEGORY 1: Research carried out for specific projects in support of the planning process, e.g.:
Heritage statements
Statements of significance
Listing proposals
Heritage/conservation management plans
CATEGORY 2: Thematic and/or reflective work, e.g.:
Thematic/typological/topographical studies
Critical/reflective/propositional essays on conservation/heritage theory and practice
The entry period for 2025 will close on 18 August 2025.
Entrants should submit the work and any supporting documents (if requested), using our online form. Please include the name and contact details for the author if you are nominating a piece of research. For information relating to the desired format of the research, please read all guidelines relevant to the category 1 or category 2 entry. The judging panel will assess all eligible submitted work.
The winner will be publicly announced at the Annual Awards Ceremony later in 2025.
For more information, please visit https://www.sahgb.org.uk/heritage-research-award.
