Since spring 2003 Wessex Archaeology has delivered Historic England's Contract for Archaeological Services in Relation to the Protection of Wreck Act 1973. Historic England (formerly English Heritage) has decided to extend the contract by an additional year taking our marine archaeologists back out into the field for the summer.
The principle aim of the contract is to supply advice to Historic England, Historic Scotland, Cadw, and the Environment and Heritage Service Northern Ireland to enable them to advise their respective Secretary of State, Scottish, Welsh or Northern Ireland Ministers, as appropriate, about issues of designation and licensing under the Protection of Wreck Act1973.
This involves fieldwork to monitor, record and investigate designated wrecks, and assess sites that may require designation. We are looking forward to another year of working with the heritage agencies, licensee teams and other stakeholders.
As the team ventures out once again, we will explore some of the fieldwork undertaken last year in a series of blogs. Keep an eye out for upcoming news to find out more.