Heritage advice
Local Heritage Fund
Owners or managers of heritage listed properties and properties in a heritage conservation area may be eligible for up to $2,000 financial assistance from Council’s Local Heritage Fund.
The purpose of the fund is to provide financial assistance to support and encourage the conservation and ongoing maintenance of privately owned heritage places.
Projects which can be funded include:
- Conservationand restoration works;
- Heritage maintenance and repair projects;
- Adaptive re-use projects;
- Heritage interpretation projects;
- Preparation of conservation management plans; and
- Building Code of Australia compliance and upgrade works.
Owners and managers are encouraged to apply for funding to assist with projects that help protect and enhance the heritage values of their property.
A full list of what can be funded is provided in the Local Heritage Fund Guidelines.
Local Heritage Fund guidelines
The fund will be administered in accordance with the Council’s Local Heritage Fund Guidelines. These guidelines outline the type of projects that can be funded, who can apply and how funds are to be matched.
Applications
Applications for funding open 28 September, 2026. A completed Local Heritage Fund Application Form and supporting documents must be received by Friday 6 November, 2026.
Funding requirements
Seniors (over 65’s) pensioners and self-funded retirees aren’t required to match funding provided under this program.
Projects need to be completed by Friday 28 May, 2027 in order to claim the grant.
For all successful grant applicants, works must be completed and a final report provided to Council by Friday 25 June, 2027. Prior to completion, regular updates are to be submitted as milestones are reached (emails are sufficient). The final report will provide a record of the work undertaken, expenditure and photographs (before/after). If updates or the final report are not provided, funding may be withdrawn.
If you require further information, please contact the Strategic Planning team via email: heritage@cessnock.nsw.gov.au
World Heritage Area
A significant part of the Cessnock local government area (LGA) is included within the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area. The Australian Government has to ensure that Australia’s world heritage properties are managed to protect their natural and cultural values.
Heritage Listings
Our region has over 200 heritage items and four heritage conservation areas. They are diverse and reflect our history and cultural identity. They’ve been listed for three main reasons, including:
- Protecting their significance through regulatory control
- Promoting their long-term conservation
- Providing incentives for their conservation, occupation and use
They range from buildings, sandstone kerb and guttering, cemeteries, memorials, and sites associated with local coalfields, to areas of townscape and natural landscape.
To be listed as a heritage item or heritage conservation area, the item or place must satisfy one or more of the Heritage Council of NSW criteria provided in the NSW Government’s guidelines Assessing heritage significance.
Heritage significance means that the building and/or site has special historical, scientific, cultural, social, archaeological, architectural, natural or aesthetic value.
Heritage sites can be classified as:
- Heritage item - can be the main building, other built structures, landscapes, trees etc. which are listed for their heritage significance. Heritage items are listed as being of either State or Local Significance. Most of the heritage items in our LGA are of Local Significance.
- Heritage Conservation Area – an area of townscape or landscape recognised for its particular heritage values that collectively give it a distinct character and identity.
- Archaeological heritage site – a site which contains ‘relics’.
- Aboriginal place of heritage significance.
If land has been identified as any of the above, then special heritage planning controls will apply to all development on that land.
To check whether your property is a heritage item or in a heritage conservation area, search Schedule 5 Environmental Heritage of Council’s Local Environmental Plan 2011. Alternatively, you can also find out if a site has heritage value using the following:
- Planning Certificate - purchase a Section 10.7 Planning Certificate which provides information on the planning controls applicable to a parcel of land.
- NSW Planning Portal Spatial Viewer - provides an online mapping tool for all the Local Environmental Plans in NSW, including our LGA.
- NSW State Heritage Inventory - contains information on why a particular item or area is heritage listed. The inventory sheets are useful if you need to prepare a development application that affects a heritage item or a heritage conservation area.
Owning a Heritage Item
In considering whether to approve a change to a heritage item, we consider:
- The heritage significance of the item
- How a proposed development affects the heritage significance
- How negative impacts are to be managed
Discuss your proposal with Council's Duty Officer before you lodge a development application. A Pre-DA meeting may be required to discuss the proposal.
Most types of development that relate to a heritage item or heritage conservation area will need to be approved through the development application process. A Heritage Minor Works and Maintenance application may be accepted depending on the scale and nature of the work.
Living in a Heritage Conservation area
Our region is made up of several towns, villages, and landscapes that are recognised for their individual character and heritage significance. Our current heritage conservation areas are:
- Branxton Conservation Area
- Greta Conservation Area
- The Great North Road, Sawyers Gully Conservation Area
- Wollombi Village Conservation Area
Most types of development in a heritage conservation area will need to be approved through a development application process.
To check whether your property is in a heritage conservation area, search Schedule 5 Environmental Heritage of Council’s Local Environmental Plan 2011. Alternatively, you can purchase a Section 10.7 Planning Certificate which provides information on the planning controls applicable to a parcel of land.
Heritage Officer
Our Heritage Officer can provide specialist advice to Council and the community on heritage conservation and maintenance.
The Heritage Officer is available during normal office hours and can provide advice on:
- Proposed building works to a heritage item or property within a heritage conservation area
- Proposed development near a heritage item
- Choice of material for building works on a heritage item or property within a heritage conservation area
- Heritage Impact Statements for proposed building works
Our Heritage Officer can also provide assistance if you’re applying for State Government funding for works to a heritage item you own.
You can make an appointment to see or speak to the Heritage Officer by filling out the form linked at the bottom of this page.
Heritage Consultants
Specialised Heritage Consultants can assist you in preparing a development application and provide advice on the maintenance of your heritage item. The Australian Heritage Services Directory helps owners and managers of heritage places connect with heritage-related businesses and professional services.
FAQs
Where can I find tradespeople that will do restoration work?
Maitland City Council's Heritage Group has produced a list of heritage tradespeople and suppliers in the Hunter region which is published as the Maitland Heritage Trades Directory and Maitland House Style Guide. This is a terrific resource for use in the Cessnock LGA as well.
Where can I find heritage maintenance and conservation guides?
The NSW Government has prepared a number of publications that provide comprehensive maintenance and conservation guides for conserving, repairing and using heritage properties. It includes such subjects as commercial limewashes, repointing lime mortar joints, treating biological growths on historic masonry, cracking of buildings in clay soils, rising damp, corrugated roofing, timber repairs, and removing paint from old buildings. They are free to download from the Heritage NSW website and are found under the sub-heading 'Building repairs, conservation, fire safety and access' of the Heritage maintenance guides page.
These documents are not a substitute for professional advice. Employing a conservation specialist is usually the easiest and often, in the long run, the most economical way of ensuring the job is done well.
When do I need a Development Application (DA)?
When proposed works on a heritage item or in a heritage conservation area cannot be approved by a Heritage Minor Works and Maintenance application, Council will require the lodgement of a development application (DA). See Council's Understanding the DA Process page for more information on what is required and what to expect during the application process.
New alterations and additions to heritage properties should:
- Be compatible with the existing building.
- Be sympathetic to the streetscape in terms of scale, form, character, materials and finishes.
- The relevant objectives and controls within the Development Control Plan (DCP).
It is recommended that you undertake research into the history of the property to help understand what features are significant. Council’s Local Studies Library has a significant physical and online collection documenting the lives of local people, organisations and community groups. They can assist with your historical research, and provide a free professional service, using Council’s extensive collection, expertise and the resources of collections across Australia.
Any DA for a property identified as a heritage item must be accompanied by a Heritage Impact Statement (HIS) and Council may also request a HIS for sites in Heritage Conservation Areas prior to granting consent. An HIS should be prepared by a suitably experienced heritage consultant following the NSW Government’s Guidelines for preparing a statement of heritage impact.
When can a Complying Development Certificate (CDC) apply to a heritage property?
In some circumstances within a Heritage Conservation Area, consent can be given via a Complying Development Certificate (CDC) for certain works subject to compliance with the criteria within the State Environmental Planning Policy (Exempt and Complying Development Codes) 2008.
CDCs can be lodged and approved by a Private Building Certifier or Council's Building Certification Team. If you have an enquiry or would like a quote from Council, visit the CCC Building Certifiers website.
Is planning approval needed for new solar panels or a solar battery on heritage properties?
Depending on the proposed location of the solar panels or solar battery, in some circumstances solar installation on a heritage listed property can be completed as exempt development, which does not require planning approval. For details of all requirements, please refer to Sections 2.41(4) and (5) of State Environmental Planning Policy (Transport and Infrastructure) 2021.
The NSW Government’s Solar panel systems: Heritage practice note provides guidance on solar panel system installation at properties listed on the State Heritage Register under the Heritage Act 1977. The guidance in this practice note may also apply to local heritage items in NSW, subject to local council approval, where required.
What is the Burra Charter?
The Burra Charter defines the basic principles and procedures to be followed in the conservation of heritage places.
These principles and procedures can be applied to a monument, a courthouse, a garden, a shell midden, a rock art site, a cottage, a road, a mining or archaeological site, a whole district or a region.
The Burra Charter has been adopted as the standard for best practice in the conservation of heritage places in Australia.
More information: Australia ICOMOS – International Council on Monuments and Sites