War Memorials Trust Bulletin

As part of its public engagement programme, the War Memorials Trust has been doing excellent work via its bulletin in identifying war memorials in photos in unknown locations. Although its regular appeals for information continue to meet with success, more local knowledge from heritage professionals would be invaluable.

What is also worth highlighting to practitioners is situations where ownership of a memorial cannot be established because legislation still exists on the statute books under the War Memorials (Local Authorities Powers) Act of 1923 (and subsequent amendments). This enables local councils to carry out work to war memorials within their area whether they officially own them or not, but it does not oblige them to do so. Nevertheless, where a war memorial is found to be contributing positively to a conservation area, but its ownership is unclear, it is possible that the 1923 statute could be invoked. It is not a piece of legislation that appears prominently, if at all, in any book on historic building law.

This article originally appeared in the Institute of Historic Building Conservation’s (IHBC’s) Context 183, published in March 2025.

--Institute of Historic Building Conservation

Related articles on Designing Buildings Conservation.

• Bulletin of the War Memorials Trust.
• Conservation area.
• Conservation.
• Heritage.
• Historic environment.
• IHBC articles.
• IHBC.
• Iraq, Afghanistan, Gulf War Memorial.
• Memorials and public parks.
• The Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
• The Dukes of Normandy and the second world war.
• UK's National Holocaust Memorial.
• War memorials.