Bath World Heritage

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Why is Bath a World Heritage Site?

UNESCO World Heritage Sites are places of cultural or natural significance which are considered to be of importance to all of the global community. We conserve them for this and future generations.

The City of Bath is exceptional in having two UNESCO inscriptions. In 1987 it was inscribed for its Hot Springs, Roman archaeology, Georgian buildings and natural landscape setting. In 2021 a second inscription was received as one of the Great Spa Towns of Europe – fashionable spa towns laid out around natural springs which are used for health and wellbeing.

Roman Archaeology

Circular Bath at the Roman Baths

Minerva's head - displayed at the Roman Baths

Hot Springs

The Sacred Spring at the Roman Baths

The Cross Bath, Visit Bath

18th Century Architecture

The Royal Crescent in Spring, Visit Bath

Pulteney Bridge, Visit Bath

18th Century Town Planning

Aerial view, The Circus and Royal Crescent, Visit Bath

Georgian Buildings, Visit Bath

Green Setting of the City

Prior Park view, Visit Bath

Royal Victoria Park, Visit Bath

The City of Bath lies within a hollow of the hills. There are green views in every direction from the city centre.

The countryside stretches right to Bath's doorstep. The hilly, green landscape was exploited by Bath's 18th century architects and developers, who created elegant terraces and villas on many of the hills.

The hills to the south of the city provided the oolitic limestone from which the city was built. Trees and woodlands populate the skyline, and lend natural beauty to the river, canal, parks and gardens. Open agricultural land on the edge of Bath is still used for grazing animals, just as it had been by the Georgians.

Bath Skyline - National Trust information

Bath Landscape Partnership Information

Social Setting

Ball at the Assembly Rooms, Rowlandson

Ball at the Assembly Rooms, Cruickshank

Bath's Georgian architecture reflected 18th century social ambitions. The city was a destination for pilgrimage, and for playing out the social aspirations of fashionable spa culture.

The social, economic and physical re-birth of the city as an internationally famous spa resort was largely due to the patronage and vision of three key characters: the architect John Wood Senior, wealthy postmaster and stone entrepreneur Ralph Allen and Bath's famous Master of Ceremonies Richard 'Beau' Nash.

Visitors flocked to Bath. The list of famous and influential people who visited, lived in or wrote about the city is extensive. Customs and practices associated with 'taking the waters' were practiced and developed here. The fashion for promenading influenced the design of Bath streets and gardens. The rules and etiquette governing polite society were embodied in buildings such as the Assembly Rooms and Pump Room.

The Assembly Rooms

The Pump Room

Roman Baths, Amy Sanders

The Royal Crescent, Visit Bath

Pulteney Bridge in Autumn, Visit Bath

Parade Gardens with a glimpse of Bath Abbey, Visit Bath

Palladian Bridge at Prior Park, Visit Bath

Camden Crescent, Visit Bath

Great Spa Towns of Europe

Vichy, Rue Alquie, Ville de Vichy, L.Plancke

Vichy, Rue Alquié, Ville de Vichy, L.Plancke

Mariánské Lázně, Caroline and Rudolph Spring, Mariánské Lázně

Spas were a huge European phenomenon from the 18th century to the early 20th century.

The Bader Lexicon of 1854 lists 652 major European spas, but only a handful of the grandest spas now survive in an authentic form. Each used natural mineral waters to treat pain and disease in the days before industrial medication and they are testimony to the development of medicine. The towns have unique urban forms and significant architecture including special spa buildings and visitor facilities such as spa houses, colonnades, churches, theatres, casino houses, dedicated hotels and boarding houses. The combination of the fabric of the towns with their parks and green spaces and surrounding ‘therapeutic landscape’ is very important. The spas attracted highly prestigious visitors and were resorts for the rich and famous prior to modern mass tourism.

It took over ten years of collaborative discussion and planning across Europe to complete the 1,434 page Great Spa Towns of Europe World Heritage Site nomination. The submission was passed to UNESCO in January 2019.

Bath's part in the transnational nomination was endorsed by Bath & North East Somerset Council in October 2018.

Great Spa Towns of Europe Website

Summary of the Outstanding Universal Value of the Great Spa Towns of Europe

Management of the World Heritage Site

UK World Heritage Sites vary considerably in their makeup. In Bath, World Heritage is principally co-ordinated by Bath & North East Somerset Council.

A dedicated manager, employed by the Council, has responsibilities for producing and implementing a management plan for the site. This officer also liaises with other World Heritage Sites to exchange information, learn from the practice of others, and represent the city at World Heritage meetings.

The City of Bath World Heritage Site Advisory Board oversees the production and implementation of the management plan. The Advisory Board usually meets three times a year to assess progress and decide on priorities. Priorities are based on the actions within the plan and on current issues and events affecting the World Heritage Site.

Management Plan

The World Heritage Site Management Plan sets out the approach to management of the Site for a six year period. It incorporates action plans relating to the City of Bath World Heritage Site and the Great Spa Towns of Europe World Heritage Site.

2016-2022 Management Plan
The City of Bath World Heritage Site Management Plan was presented to Bath and North East Somerset Council’s Full Council. The Council endorsed the plan for submission to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and in turn to UNESCO. The 2016-2022 Management Plan was the subject of a mid-term monitoring exercise.

The Statement of Community Involvement, which records full details of the consultation, comments received and responses, is available on request. Endorsement by local bodies and full public consultation gives the plan considerable weight as a material consideration in the planning process.

The need for a World Heritage Site Management Plan
Bath is a complex site, encompassing an entire living city of 100,000 people where modern life co-exists alongside historic cultural and natural assets of global significance. Achieving balance between conservation and community needs is the constant challenge which this plan addresses.

The Plan sets out:

Why Bath is a World Heritage Site
The issues facing the Site, and the corresponding management objectives
Actions to achieve the objectives

The reasons for Bath’s inscription as a World Heritage Site are defined by what is termed as the ‘Outstanding Universal Value’ of the Site.

A main aim of the plan is to ensure that the Outstanding Universal Value of the Site and its setting is understood, protected and sustained. The plan addresses Bath as a World Heritage Site, and is not a management plan for every aspect of life in the city, and that, whilst the boundary of the site covers the whole city, it also includes the setting of the Site in the countryside immediately beyond.

UNESCO, the body overseeing World Heritage, requires all Sites to have a management plan.

Earlier Management Plans

The 2003-2009 World Heritage Site Management Plan was the first to be produced for Bath. It is included here as a background document to show the evolution of management approach in the site. The 2003 plan was produced at a time when management plans for World Heritage Sites were rare, and as such it provided a model for many sites worldwide.

The 2003-2009 Management Plan is divided into three files for easier downloading: the main document itself, the chapter pages and front cover, and the map.

Downloadable documents

Name	Details
Advisory Board minutes 7 November 2023	DOC, 221 KB	Download
ADVISORY BOARD - Terms of Reference	DOCX, 133 KB	Download
STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT GROUP - Terms of Reference	DOCX, 124 KB	Download
Advisory Board minutes 28 February 2023	PDF, 253 KB	Download
Advisory Board minutes 17 May 2022	PDF, 275 KB	Download
Advisory Board minutes 30 November 2021	PDF, 291 KB	Download
Advisory Board minutes 11 May 2021	PDF, 218 KB	Download
Advisory Board minutes 23 March 2021	PDF, 232 KB	Download
Advisory Board minutes 17 November 2020 (climate emergency)	PDF, 216 KB	Download
Advisory Board minutes 13 October 2020	PDF, 223 KB	Download
Advisory Board minutes 14 July 2020	PDF, 264 KB	Download
Advisory Board minutes 11 February 2020	PDF, 224 KB	Download
Advisory Board minutes 22 October 2019	PDF, 197 KB	Download
Steering Group minutes 23 November 2017	PDF, 212 KB	Download
Steering Group minutes 25 July 2017	PDF, 203 KB	Download
Steering Group minutes 22 November 2016	PDF, 197 KB	Download
Steering Group minutes 28 July 2016	PDF, 136 KB	Download
Steering Group minutes 7 April 2016	PDF, 142 KB	Download

Chair of the World Heritage Site Advisory Board

Professor Marion Harney

Chair of the World Heritage Site Advisory Board

Professor Marion Harney is Professor of Building and Landscape Conservation, Associate Dean Education, Faculty of Engineering and Design, University Athena SWAN Lead (Vice Chancellor’s Office), Project Lead Curriculum Transformation (Pro Vice Chancellor Education), Department of Architecture & Civil Engineering, at the University of Bath.

She is also Visiting Professor/Academic Consultant, Conservation of Parks, Gardens and Landscapes at the University of Westminster.

She has been a member of Bath World Heritage Site Advisory Group since 2007 and shares responsibility for overseeing the development, production and implementation of the World Heritage Site Management Plan.

Setting Study

Bath is renowned for its outstanding architecture, while its landscape and the landscape setting of the City has not always enjoyed the same recognition, and has often been taken for granted.

The setting is protected through planning policy but there is limited literature on what is important to the setting, how far it extends or how impacts should be assessed. A Setting Study Information Paper in 2009 brought these issues together in one document to support aspects of the Council's Core Strategy. This Information Paper can be downloaded in six parts.

A City of Bath World Heritage Site Setting Supplementary Planning Document ensures planning decisions can be made based on a thorough understanding of the consequences of any proposals.

For further information about the landscape setting of Bath and planning policy view the Bathscape Landscape Partnership website and the Bath & North East Somerset Council Planning Services website.

Downloadable documents

Name	Details
Setting Study part 1	PDF, 4 MB	Download
Setting Study part 2	PDF, 2 MB	Download
Setting Study part 3	PDF, 2 MB	Download
Setting Study part 4	PDF, 2 MB	Download
Setting Study part 5	PDF, 3 MB	Download
Setting Study part 6	PDF, 3 MB	Download
WHS setting supplementary planning document	PDF, 15 MB	Download

International Work

Organization of World Heritage Cities

Bath, through the Mayor's office, belongs to an international non-profit network of heritage cities called the Organization of World Heritage Cities (OWHC). This Organization aims to encourage closer working between cities, and to help cities improve their management methods.

For more information on the OWHC see the OWHC website.

Our region

Through the OWHC, Bath works with a number of cities, particularly those of the North West European Region. This region includes the following cities:

Rauma,Finland
Berlin, Germany
Stralsund, Germany
Wismar,Germany
Bergen, Norway
Brugge, Belgium
Visby,Sweden
Cesky Krumlov, Czech Republic
Bamberg, Germany
Quedlinburg, Germany
Warsaw, Poland
Luxembourg, Luxembourg
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Beemster, Netherlands
Vienna, Austria
Regensburg, Germany

Bath works very closely with other UK World Heritage Site cities, to co-ordinate our approach to the OWHC and make our membership as effective as possible.

Organization of World Heritage Cities

The Organization of World Heritage Cities is an international non-profit organisation which aims to help member cities adapt and improve their management methods once they become World Heritage Sites.

Founded on September 8, 1993 in Fez, Morocco, the Organisation is now made up of 250 cities which have World Heritage Sites located within their boundaries. The OWHC's headquarters are in Quebec City, Canada, where the General Secretariat co-ordinates the work of the organisation. Decisions on what the OWHC will do are made regularly by the Board (made up of 8 mayors from member cities) and at the General Assembly. This Assembly meets every two years at the world conference and is made up of one representative from every member city. There are regional conferences or meetings generally held in the intervening years.

There are eight regional groups within the OWHC which help co-ordinate activity and promote close links between cities. These are North-West Europe; Central and Eastern Europe; South Europe and Mediterranean; Latin America; Euro-Asia; North Africa and Arab States; East Africa; and, Asia-Pacific.

The OWHC runs various projects aimed at raising awareness on World Heritage and member cities, including working with UNESCO and the Council of Europe, and to inform and train those who manage the cities. It provides a network and forum for the exchange of ideas and information.

Our Region

This region is co-ordinated from Regensburg, Germany. The Region's members come from Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden and the UK.

Enhancement Fund

The Bath World Heritage Enhancement Fund is a partnership between the World Heritage Site Advisory Board, Bath and North East Somerset Council and Bath Preservation Trust.

It has three aims:

to initiate and organise minor enhancements to Bath's heritage;
to assist and encourage others to undertake such work;
to organise volunteers for the same purpose.

The Fund has organised or participated in over 60 projects across the World Heritage Site. These projects are almost always in partnership with other organisations, from community groups to national bodies such as the National Trust. Details of the projects are outlined in the Enhancement Fund's annual newsletters. Ideas for further projects, especially those concerned with the heritage attributes on which Bath's World Heritage Site status is based, are always welcome.

We are very grateful for the financial support of our partners.

If you would like further information about the Bath World Heritage Enhancement Fund please contact the Administrator, Nikita Hooper.

For general World Heritage information, please contact Bath's World Heritage Site Manager.

The Enhancement Fund has published two city trails for Bath - a 1.5 hour World Heritage City Trail and a Nelson Trail highlighting connections between Admiral Lord Nelson and Bath which you may download below.

The Enhancement Fund has also commissioned and published the first in a series of illustrated reports about heritage features in the World Heritage Site. The Watchman's Box report is also available for download below.

Name	Details
Bath World Heritage Site City Trail	PDF, 681 KB	Download
Bath World Heritage Site Nelson Trail	PDF, 792 KB	Download
Watchman's Box report	PDF, 6 MB	Download

Enhancement Fund projects

Bath's World Heritage Enhancement Fund has undertaken over sixty projects city-wide, often in partnership with other organisations. These projects, designed to 'enhance the World Heritage Site', have been concerned with restoration, conservation, education and interpretation.

Example projects

In an ongoing programme, historic incised and painted street signs are being restored on buildings in the city. Many of these signs, cut into Bath Stone building walls, have faded due to weathering and pollution. The finished signs are clear to read and have a smarter appearance. Before and after photographs of the sign at Axford's Buildings are below. This project is one of many initiated by the Fund that utilises traditional craft skills. This project won an award at the Georgian Group Architectural Awards in 2019.

The ancient bank and ditch earthwork known as the Wansdyke runs partly along the southern boundary of the World Heritage Site. There was consensus about the need to interpret and protect the landmark better, as it had suffered from general neglect and the dumping of waste. Working in partnership with South Stoke Parish Council, local ward councillors and Bath and North East Somerset Council's Heritage Services, interpretation boards were researched, designed and erected to mark the Wansdyke.

Further details of projects undertaken in the last few years are described in the newsletters of the Enhancement Fund.

Show image info

Axfords Buildings sign before restoration

Show image info

Axfords Buildings sign before restoration

Enhancement fund newsletters

Name	Details
Enhancement Fund newsletter 2022	PDF, 498 KB	Download
Enhancement Fund newsletter 2021	PDF, 544 KB	Download
Enhancement Fund newsletter 2020	PDF, 550 KB	Download
Enhancement Fund newsletter 2017	PDF, 342 KB	Download
Enhancement Fund newsletter 2016	PDF, 373 KB	Download

Name	Details
World Heritage Site Management Plan 2016 - 2022	PDF, 4 MB	Download
Management Plan mid-term monitoring table	PDF, 451 KB	Download
Management Plan mid-term monitoring covering report	PDF, 175 KB	Download
City of Bath World Heritage Site Management Plan 2010 - 2016	PDF, 1 MB	Download
2014 Update to the City of Bath World Heritage Site Management Plan	PDF, 1 MB	Download
City of Bath World Heritage Site Management Plan 2003 - 2009	PDF, 776 KB	Download
2003 - 2009 WHS Management Plan cover and dividers	PDF, 2 MB	Download
2003 - 2009 WHS Management Plan map	PDF, 848 KB	Download

Explore Bath's world heritage

Other things to do in Bath

Bath World Heritage

UNESCO World Heritage Sites are places of cultural or natural significance which are considered to be of importance to all of the global community. We conserve them for this and future generations.

Bath's Roman remains are one element of the 'Outstanding Universal Value' that makes Bath a World Heritage Site.

Bath's Hot Springs are the only ones in Britain. 250,000 gallons of water flow through the springs each day. There are three main springs - the King's Spring, the Hetling Spring and the Cross Bath Spring.

The neo-classical architectural style dominates in the city. Architects including John Wood the Elder, John Wood the Younger, Robert Adam, Thomas Baldwin, John Palmer, John Eveleigh and John Pinch followed Palladian principles in the building of houses, public buildings, bridges and churches.

In the 18th century Bath was re-invented as a fashionable health resort. It expanded dramatically beyond its city walls. Medieval streets were transformed into a spacious and beautiful classical city, where architecture and the natural landscape complemented each other.

The City of Bath lies within a hollow of the hills. There are green views in every direction from the city centre.

Bath's Georgian architecture reflected 18th century social ambitions. The city was a destination for pilgrimage, and for playing out the social aspirations of fashionable spa culture.

The Great Spa Towns of Europe were inscribed onto the UNESCO World Heritage list on 24th July 2021, making Bath a rare double-nominated World Heritage Site.

Spas were a huge European phenomenon from the 18th century to the early 20th century.

UK World Heritage Sites vary considerably in their makeup. In Bath, World Heritage is principally co-ordinated by Bath & North East Somerset Council.

The World Heritage Site Management Plan sets out the approach to management of the Site for a six year period. It incorporates action plans relating to the City of Bath World Heritage Site and the Great Spa Towns of Europe World Heritage Site.

The City of Bath World Heritage Site Steering Group became the City of Bath World Heritage Site Advisory Board in January 2018. The Advisory Board oversees the production and implementation of the City of Bath World Heritage Site Management Plan.

Professor Marion Harney

Chair of the World Heritage Site Advisory Board

Bath is renowned for its outstanding architecture, while its landscape and the landscape setting of the City has not always enjoyed the same recognition, and has often been taken for granted.

Organization of World Heritage Cities

Our region

Organization of World Heritage Cities

Our Region

The Bath World Heritage Enhancement Fund is a partnership between the World Heritage Site Advisory Board, Bath and North East Somerset Council and Bath Preservation Trust.

Bath's World Heritage Enhancement Fund has undertaken over sixty projects city-wide, often in partnership with other organisations. These projects, designed to 'enhance the World Heritage Site', have been concerned with restoration, conservation, education and interpretation.

Explore Bath's world heritage

Explore Bath's world heritage

Other things to do in Bath

Bath World Heritage

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