Historic Heritage Guide

 Local heritage is managed through Victoria’s planning system under the Planning and Environment Act 1987.

The main planning control used to protect local heritage is called the Heritage Overlay. This overlay is applied by local councils to places that have cultural or historical significance through Clause 43.01 of a council's planning scheme.

A Heritage Overlay may apply to:

• an individually significant building or place
• a heritage streetscape or precinct
• land near a World Heritage listed place

Across Victoria, thousands of properties are affected by Heritage Overlays.

What does a Heritage Overlay Mean?

 If a property is affected by a Heritage Overlay, a planning permit may be required before certain works can occur.

This can include:

• demolition of a building or structure
• subdivision of land
• external alterations or additions
• construction of a new building
• changes to fences or outbuildings
• removal of significant trees

The exact requirements depend on the individual overlay and the local planning scheme.

Who Assesses the Application?

 The local council is usually the decision-maker for Heritage Overlay applications.

Council heritage advisors assess proposals against:

• the Statement of Significance for the place
• heritage design guidelines
• local and state planning policies

A Heritage Impact Statement is often required to explain how the proposed works will affect the heritage significance of the property or precinct.

Places of state-level heritage significance are protected under a separate system established by the Heritage Act 2017.

This system is managed by Heritage Victoria.

The Heritage Act 2017 establishes the Victorian Heritage Register (VHR), which includes places and objects considered important to the State of Victoria as a whole.

This system is separate from local council Heritage Overlays.

 A property can be:

• covered by a local Heritage Overlay,
• included on the Victorian Heritage Register,
• or both.

What Happens if a Place is on the Victorian Heritage Register?

Places included on the Victorian Heritage Register receive statutory protection under the Heritage Act 2017.

This means approval is required before works can occur, including:

• demolition
• alterations
• excavation
• relocation
• removal of significant fabric

Approval is managed through a permit process administered by Heritage Victoria.

Some heritage places are protected under both systems at the same time.

In these situations:

• a planning permit may still be required from the local council, and
• a separate heritage permit may also be required from Heritage Victoria.

Both approval processes must usually be completed before works can begin.

A Heritage Impact Statement is a key document in both heritage systems and its mandatory for Heritage Victoria permit applications.

It helps decision-makers understand:

• the heritage significance of a place
• how proposed works may affect that significance
• whether the proposal is appropriate
• what measures may reduce heritage impacts

For many planning permit and heritage permit applications, a well-prepared Heritage Impact Statement is essential to achieving approval.

The starting point for any HIS is a clear understanding of what makes the place significant. This requires:

• Identification of the heritage place or object, including its VHR registration number for state-listed places or Heritage Overlay identifier for locally listed places
• Reference to the Statement of Significance — the formal document that identifies what is important about the place, why it is important, and how it meets the relevant heritage criteria
• Where a Conservation Management Plan (CMP) has been prepared, reference to its policies and how the proposed works accord with those policies
• Identification of the contributory elements of the place — the specific physical fabric, spaces, settings, and associations that contribute to its cultural heritage significance

The HIS must clearly describe what is proposed — not in abstract terms, but with specific reference to the building elements, materials, spaces, and settings that will be affected. Proposed works must be cross-referenced to the architectural drawings and other technical documentation accompanying the application. 

This is the substantive section of the Heritage Impact Statement and the section on which Heritage Victoria and council heritage advisors will focus most closely. 

It must assess, element by element:

• The nature and extent of the impact of the proposed works on the cultural heritage significance of the place — including impacts on fabric, setting, use, associations, and meaning
• Whether the impact is reversible or irreversible — reversible changes that preserve the capacity to return the place to its current state are generally more acceptable than irreversible alterations or demolition of significant fabric
• How the proposed design responds to the Statement of Significance — specifically, how it avoids, mitigates, or manages harm to the values identified as significant
• Compliance with the Burra Charter — the Australia ICOMOS Charter for Places of Cultural Significance 2013 is the recognised professional standard for conservation practice in Australia and the benchmark against which Heritage Victoria assesses all permit applications. Its guiding principle — do as much as necessary to care for a place and make it useable, but otherwise change it as little as possible — should underpin the design approach and be explicitly reflected in the HIS
• Heritage Victoria's Guiding Principles for Changes Proposed to Places in the Victorian Heritage Register, which advocate a cautious, evidence-based approach to change that retains significant fabric and avoids harm wherever possible

For Heritage Victoria permit applications, the HIS should expressly address the mandatory considerations set out in Section 101(2) of the Heritage Act 2017, which Heritage Victoria must consider in determining the application:

• s101(2)(a) — The extent to which the application would affect the cultural heritage significance of the registered place or object. This is the primary consideration and the central focus of the HIS.
• s101(2)(b) — The extent to which approval would affect the reasonable or economic use of the place — relevant where refusal would effectively prevent any beneficial use.
• s101(2)(c) — Any submissions received from the public during the advertising period.
• s101(2)(d) — Where the applicant is a public authority, the extent to which refusal would unreasonably affect its ability to perform a statutory duty. Applies only where the applicant is a public authority as defined in the Act.
• s101(2)(e) — The effect of the proposal on world heritage values or any approved World Heritage Strategy Plan — relevant only where the place is within a World Heritage Environs Area.
• s101(2)(f) — Any matters relating to the protection and conservation of the registered place or object, including conservation issues, deferred maintenance, or specific protection requirements.

Under Section 101(3), Heritage Victoria also has discretion to consider other matters, including impacts on adjacent or neighbouring heritage places. The HIS should address any nearby heritage places that may be affected by the proposed works.

Where the proposed works will cause some degree of harm to heritage significance, the HIS must propose specific, practical mitigation and management measures. Vague commitments to "respecting heritage" are not sufficient. Measures may include:

• Retention of specific elements of significant fabric that would otherwise be at risk
• Use of sympathetic materials, finishes, or construction methods that minimise harm to significant fabric
• Photographic and measured archival recording of elements to be removed, in accordance with Heritage Victoria's archival recording guidelines
• Permit conditions specifying the standard of workmanship required
• Monitoring and archaeological supervision requirements for works involving ground disturbance in areas of potential historical archaeological sensitivity

The HIS must conclude with a clear statement of whether, in the professional opinion of the author, the proposed works will or will not adversely affect the cultural heritage significance of the place or object. It should summarise the net impact of the proposal — taking into account the mitigation measures proposed — and make a clear, unambiguous recommendation as to the appropriate heritage response.

A weak or hedged conclusion undermines an otherwise strong HIS. Decision-makers expect a definitive professional opinion, not a qualified non-answer.