The information needs of UK historic houses: mapping the ground
| Date | 19 January 2010 |
| Published date | 19 January 2010 |
| Pages | 28-45 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/00220411011016353 |
| Author | Alan Brine,John Feather |
| Subject Matter | Information & knowledge management,Library & information science |
The information needs of UK
historic houses: mapping the
ground
Alan Brine
Library Services, De Montfort University, Leicester, UK, and
John Feather
Department of Information Science, Loughborough University,
Loughborough, UK
Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to concentrate on establishments that are known as the “built
heritage”, often described as “historic houses”. Many operate in a similar vein to small businesses and
often have a more diverse range of needs. In the UK historic houses form part of the tourism and
leisure market. Heritage encompasses a wide variety of establishments including historic houses,
historic gardens, heritage centres, town centres, countryside and museums.
Design/methodology/approach – A model was developed for the study to show the information
needs of historic houses and the information-seeking behaviour of those managing historic houses.
Data have been collected both via questionnaires to and interviews of those managing properties. The
collection of data focused on diversity of activities, information provision, use of information,
developments (including technology) and collaboration.
Findings – The conclusions discuss the management of information and the difficulties expressed
for those managing historic houses as discovered during the research. Properties need to be able to
make effective use of this to protect the heritage for future generations. Building on the empirical work
recommendations are made on policy making, education, audits, co-operation and technology to
improve the provision and management of information within the sector to support these
establishments.
Originality/value – The research represents the first study to investigate the existing situation of
historic houses and their information needs in the UK, to try and provide an overview of the sector and
information provision and how that might be improved.
Keywords Heritage, Information management
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction
The heritage sector has become a major economic force. The sector is diverse; it
includes historic townscapes and landscapes, archaeological sites and remains, and
standing buildings and monuments (Herbert, 1995). It is not confined to the UK. Indeed,
heritage tourism and the related activity of cultural tourism are a world-wide
phenomenon which was a characteristic development of the last quarter of the
twentieth century, partly because of increased leisure time and partly because of the
declining real cost of travel (McKercher and du Cros, 2002). It has been seen as a tool for
forging new kinds of national identity (Ashworth and Larkham, 1994), but is not
always an unmixed blessing to local or indigenous people despite the economic
benefits which it can bring (Boniface, 1994). In Britain, however, with its long and
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at
www.emeraldinsight.com/0022-0418.htm
JDOC
66,1
28
Received 11 March 2009
Revised 8 June 2009
Accepted 29 June 2009
Journal of Documentation
Vol. 66 No. 1, 2010
pp. 28-45
qEmerald Group Publishing Limited
0022-0418
DOI 10.1108/00220411011016353
relatively stable history, historic sites and buildings abound in both town and
countryside throughout the UK, many of them still in daily use. There were some 452
million visits to historic attractions in 2001 (Central Statistical Office, 2003, pp. 228-9).
The broader context is that about 25 per cent of the adult workforce is engaged in
activities such as hotels, catering and hospitality, to which the tourism industry is
closely linked (Central Statistical Office, 2003, p. 80).
The most important buildings – in terms of architectural merit or historic interest –
are “listed” by English Heritage, CADW and Historic Scotland. English Heritage
currently has some 370,000 buildings on its list, although fewer than 10 per cen t are in
Grades I and IIA which are reserved for buildings of exceptional importance (English
Heritage, 2004). There are some 27,000 listed buildings in Wales (about 2 per cent in
Grade I) (CADW, 2004), and about 46,000 in Scotland of which about 8 per cent are in
Category A as being of greatest importance (Historic Scotland, 2004).The Grade I and
Category A buildings include some major tourist attractions, some of which are still
occupied by their owners as well as being open to the public. The Historic Houses
Association, which represents this part of the sector, has some 1,500 members; the 350
member properties which are regularly open to the public attract some 12 million
visitors a year (Historic Houses Association, 2004a). Many other houses which are not
regularly open offer facilities for conferences, weddings and other events, or are open
by appointment (Historic House Venues, 2004). As a sector there is great diversity of
ownership and management.
These properties, which are businesses, need to be managed both as tou rist
destinations and as historic buildings. This often includes the management not only of
the building itself, but also of surrounding landscapes and gardens (which may
themselves be of historical importance) and the contents and interior fabric. For a large
house – whatever the ownership status – this requires management like any other
business in terms of finance, human resources and the physical assets. There are added
complications, especially for properties still in private hands, such as the potential
impact of death duties on estates (Yale, 1990, pp. 185-90). There is also the over-riding
factor of the nature of the property; the business derived from it crucially depends on
its preservation in a recognisable and “authentic” form. This can be in conflict with
typical business objective of maximising profit, and has to be seen as one of the
constraints on management and long-term planning (Laws, 2001, pp. 82-85). In any
case it requires access to expertise and information on the physical preservation of
property and its contents as the core assets of the enterprise. Agencies such as English
Heritage, CADW and Historic Scotland, or the Department of Culture Media and Sport,
might be thought of as potential providers of information, but central information or
library services that help those responsible for individual properties to manage their
knowledge, are not necessarily available to those managing properties.
2. Hypotheses and methodology
The research sought to determine the information management issues in relation to
these properties, and, in particular, how information needs are identified and
addressed. The key question is:
How do the managers and owners of properties acquire and organise their information?
UK historic
houses
29
Get this document and AI-powered insights with a free trial of vLex and Vincent AI
Get Started for FreeStart Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
Start Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
Start Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
Start Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
Start Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting