The Trustees and President of World Heritage UK (WHUK) would like to express their sadness at the recent closure of the Jurassic Coast Trust. The Trust has been responsible for the management and conservation of the Dorset and East Devon Coast World Heritage Site (WHS), inscribed in 2001 for its global significance to Earth Sciences.
Our thoughts go immediately to those staff, volunteers and Trustees affected by this closure, and we want to wish them all the very best for the future. They also receive our thanks for their support for and engagement with the work that WHUK undertakes for the UK’s World Heritage sector.
WHUK understands that responsibility for the Jurassic Coast WHS now falls to the Local Authorities of Dorset Council and Devon County Council. We hope that the extensive works delivered by the Jurassic Coast Trust can now be continued by the joint Councils management. WHUK is happy to offer its knowledge and experience to the new WHS management as it takes on responsibility to deliver the Management Plan.
Management sustainability has been acknowledged as a challenge for the World Heritage sector. The sad closure of the Jurassic Coast Trust brings this threat into reality. WHUK calls upon the State Party and home nation heritage bodies to ensure that this situation is not repeated elsewhere at other WHSs which are at the pinnacle of global heritage recognition.