Heritage Watch scheme launched in Cornwall and Devon to protect historic sites
The regional scheme hopes to prevent heritage and rural crime
Last updated 15th Jun 2023
Devon and Cornwall have launched a Heritage Watch scheme to protect the South West region from crime.
Police have launched the regional scheme today (Thursday 15 June) to help prevent damage to historic sites and monuments that are listed and protected.
Heritage Watch aims to help prevent and detect heritage crime in the two counties - which contains more than 35,000 designated heritage sites - by encouraging property owners, landowners and people to report and sharing of information on crime, suspicious behaviour and damage to heritage assets.
Rupert Hanbury-Tenison, landowner in Bodmin Moor, told us: "We're seeing an increase in damage from not only people damaging individual structures, but off-road driving, people setting fire to the landscape.
"I had a deliberate fire set on my own bit of land on Bodmin Moor just last week, luckily the fire brigade got there on time but it could have damaged a huge area."
Heritage crime is any offence involving damage or loss to the historic environment and cultural property, which may include buildings, monuments and landscapes that reflect our history or objects of artistic, historical, archaeological and scientific interest.
A standing stone, Men Scryfa, near Penzance, was damaged earlier this month in a suspected arson attack. The aim of this scheme, which is based on similar schemes run nationally, is to reduce and protect similar monuments in the future.
Julie, chair of Devon and Cornwall Community Watch Association, said: "For us, we are so rich in heritage. The past is our history and it's so important.
"We have to save and preserve things for future generations. Being rich in heritage sites and the fact people are interested and spend lots and lots of money visiting these wonderful sites, we need to protect them for years to come."