Character is not heritage. Character is relative to its local context. What provides reference to, and informs the character of, the area is linked to activity. The recognition of character is not a heritage mechanism and should not be used or seen as a default to heritage. Rather, such provisions recognise characteristics that should be referenced and inform change within areas that have been developed and where new building has immediate contextual references. Character is not heritage; heritage is heritage, but heritage can be character. Character has a great deal to do with the appreciable qualities of context.

Character is a broader phenomenon that, as English Heritage have recognised “is not generally focussed on individual heritage assets”[1]. English Heritage recognise that “Historic assets and their settings will always contribute to the character of a place, but the two concepts should not be confused.”