Cheshire Historic Landscape Characterisation (HLC)

The Cheshire HLC project recorded the visible evidence of human history, which forms the modern landscape. This was been achieved by identifying landscape attributes from a range of historical maps. These attributes are categorised into a series of Groups, Types and Sub-types and their extent mapped and analysed using a Geographic Information System (GIS). This work enabled the historic character of any given area to be presented, together with the historic processes which formed it, to be shown cartographically.

The project had the following general aims and specific objectives:

General Aims
-To improve and promote the understanding and appreciation of the project area's historic landscape, both locally and regionally.
-To interpret and characterise how past communities have contributed to the appearance of the modern landscape.
-To create a body of data to be used for the interpretation of 'heritage assets' (archaeological remains, historic structures and other historic features) within the landscape.
-To enable informed decisions to be undertaken on future development and conservation, and to assist partnership with other agencies.

Specific Objectives
-To facilitate a landscape directed approach to archaeological development control and the interpretation of data from the Sites and Monuments Record/Historic Environment Record for Merseyside and Cheshire.
-To inform future Landscape Strategies and Assessments.
-To provide a complementary study to any Landscape Character Assessment and Cheshire's Historic Towns Survey.
-To allow a regional Historic Landscape Characterisation overview project to be defined, in collaboration with Lancashire, Cumbria, Merseyside and Greater Manchester.
-To disseminate the final analysis through professional and popular publications.