Welcome to the website for World Heritage UK, an organisation set up in 2015 to undertake networking, advocacy and promotion for the UK’s 33 outstanding World Heritage Sites, and the Tentative List Sites progressing towards WHS status.
World Heritage Sites are places from all around the world that are considered so important for the shared understanding and future of our planet we should look after them forever. There are more than 1100 Sites globally, some are natural like the Great Barrier Reef or the Serengeti, and many are man-made like Stonehenge or the Taj Mahal. World Heritage Sites are identified by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), but looked after locally.
Our Vision is that the United Kingdom will have a coherent approach to World Heritage Sites that is better known and understood, and supported through sustainable funding, so that the Outstanding Universal Values of the Sites can provide inspiration, learning and enjoyment for society and contribute to the UK’s standing in the world.
More about our strategyOur Mission is to raise the profile and secure the future of the UK collection of World Heritage Sites by advocating for support, resources and recognition, facilitating learning and networking, and promoting the Sites and their values.
The UK currently has 33 World Heritage Sites and more sites progressing towards World Heritage Site status. All of them contribute to the story of humankind and our planet.
They stretch across the whole of the UK and beyond to our Overseas Territories and cover geology, the natural world and all aspects of our history from prehistory to the 20th Century. Explore each of our UK World Heritage Sites and how to find out more here.
All UK World Heritage sitesWorld Heritage UK is a membership organisation, formally known as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO). Its voting members set the strategy for the organisation. We invite any individual or organisation with an interest in World Heritage to join us.
Our strength lies in the fact that the majority of the UK’s World Heritage Sites are represented in our membership giving us the collective power to represent you at the highest level and speak for the UK’s World Heritage Sites.
Whether you are responsible for the management of a World Heritage Site, volunteer for an organisation in a World Heritage Site or have a professional or academic interest, we welcome you to join us and show your support for World Heritage in the UK. We have three levels of membership currently. See below to find out more.
Download membership brochure More about MembershipsKraków’s International Cultural Centre, ICOMOS Poland and City of Kraków are hosting the international conference “50 years of the UNESCO…
Read moreThe 45th World Heritage Committee is planned to be held in Kazan, in the Russian Federation. The UK’s Ambassador to…
Read moreA welcome return to in-person events… Join World Heritage UK at our spring event Thursday 28 April 2022, at Blenheim Palace World Heritage…
Read moreWorld Heritage Day (originally known as the International Monuments and Sites Day) is a global celebration of this planet’s heritage.…
Read moreThe UK Government is convening a panel of experts to consider applications for inclusion on a new Tentative List of…
Read moreA review by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) of the UK’s World Heritage Site Tentative List…
Read moreOur events programme for 2021 is currently in development in the light of the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. We will announce our programme of online forum and webinars as they are confirmed.
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