In 2023, Historic England funded CIfA to host a seminar to celebrate the legacy of the Protection of Wrecks Act, 1973, as part of efforts to mark the 50th Anniversary of the Act. The project reflected upon the successes, challenges and future potential of the Protection of Wrecks Act 1973 (PWA 1973) in England.
The seminar was held in November 2023, hosted by CIfA and attended by 58 delegates at the Society of Antiquaries of London, and streamed live on YouTube. The proceedings can be viewed here.
The context and the findings of the project are described in the report, which you can download below.
The conclusion of the project’s stakeholder evaluation is that the PWA 1973 remains an important piece of legislation in the protection of underwater cultural heritage. However, the legislation could be significantly improved, because, as originally enacted, it was never intended to last as long as it has. In addition, there is scope for clarification on the differentiation of, and relationship between, the PWA 1973 and the AMAAA 1979 to communicate Historic England’s strategic approach to the designation of UHA recognising the specific operational characteristics of the two Acts. Further, attitudes towards both heritage management and the marine environment in the UK have changed considerably over the decades, as have various contexts of wider legislation, policy, seabed development and threat