How to find out if you live near a scheduled monument
Three ways to check for scheduled monuments near your property in England, what scheduling means, and how it affects development in the surrounding area.
Checking a specific site?
Check a site free: your council, whether you are in a conservation area, and a basic flood check. The £9.99 site report covers everything else we can check.
Postcode, address or grid reference. England, Wales and Scotland. Free check, then the site report is £9.99, one-off.
Scheduled monuments are nationally important archaeological sites and historic structures protected by law. If one is on or near your property, it can significantly affect what development is possible. There are around 20,000 scheduled monuments in England, from Roman forts and medieval castles to Bronze Age barrows and industrial structures.
This guide is about England. In Wales, Cadw is the heritage body, and in Scotland Historic Environment Scotland grants scheduled monument consent itself. The rules and bodies differ, so check with the right one.
Method 1: Check the site with Planning Constraints
Check a site free shows which council covers the address and whether it is in a conservation area. The scheduled monument check is part of the site report (£9.99, one-off), which covers everything we can check within 500 m of your pin, for 30 days. The report link never expires.
- Open the site checker
- Search for your postcode or address
- Review the free result, then open the site report for the scheduled monument check
- Monument locations and extents appear on the map
The report covers scheduled monuments near the point you searched, not only those on the exact property. Scheduled monument data comes from Historic England's National Heritage List, not council submissions. We show what we found, what came back clear, and where a source couldn't be checked. Some councils don't publish every dataset, so ask the council where it matters.
Method 2: Search the National Heritage List
Historic England's National Heritage List for England includes scheduled monuments alongside listed buildings. Search by location, name or reference number.
Each entry includes a description, the scheduling date and a map showing the monument's extent. The protected area often extends beyond the visible remains.
Method 3: Searches during a purchase
If you are buying, ask your solicitor whether the searches they order will report scheduled monuments. A local authority search (CON29) is ordered after your offer is accepted, so if a monument could affect your plans, check before you offer. Historic England is also consulted on planning applications that might affect the setting of scheduled monuments. Planning Constraints is not an official search.
What is a scheduled monument?
Scheduling is the oldest form of heritage protection in England, dating back to the Ancient Monuments Protection Act 1882. A scheduled monument is a site of national importance included in the Schedule of Monuments maintained by the Secretary of State, acting on the advice of Historic England.
Scheduled monuments cover a wide range:
- Prehistoric sites: stone circles, burial mounds, hillforts, field systems
- Roman remains: forts, roads, villas, bath houses
- Medieval structures: castles, moated sites, abbeys, village earthworks
- Post-medieval and industrial sites: blast furnaces, lime kilns, colliery remains
- Military sites: defensive structures, pillboxes, Cold War bunkers
Many are below ground, so you may not see them from the surface. The scheduled area is defined on a map and can extend well beyond the visible remains.
How scheduling affects your property
Scheduled monument consent
If a monument is on your land, you need scheduled monument consent (SMC) from the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, administered with Historic England's advice, for works that would affect it. Under section 2 of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979, that includes:
- Demolishing or destroying the monument, or damaging it
- Removing or repairing it, or any part of it
- Making alterations or additions to it
- Flooding or tipping on the land where it stands
Ground works in the scheduled area, such as digging foundations or ploughing, can fall within these. SMC is separate from planning permission, and you may need both.
Doing these works without consent is an offence. In England and Wales the penalty on conviction in a magistrates' court is a fine up to the statutory maximum, and on conviction in the Crown Court the fine is unlimited. There are defences, including taking all reasonable precautions or not knowing, and having no reason to believe, that a monument was present.
The setting of scheduled monuments
Even if the monument is not on your land, its setting is a material consideration in planning decisions. The National Planning Policy Framework, republished on 17 August 2026, says substantial harm to or loss of a scheduled monument should be "wholly exceptional" (policy HE6), so development near a monument that would harm its significance or setting can be refused.
This matters most if you are planning:
- New buildings within sight lines of a monument
- Development that would change the character of the surrounding landscape
- Works that might affect buried archaeology connected to the monument
Archaeological assessments
If you apply for planning permission near a scheduled monument, the council may ask for an archaeological assessment or evaluation, such as a desk-based assessment or trial trenching, to understand the effect on buried remains.
What if you find archaeology during building work?
If you find archaeological remains during construction or groundworks, stop work and contact your council's archaeological officer. There is no automatic legal requirement to stop unless the site is scheduled, but councils usually attach conditions to planning permissions requiring archaeological recording of finds. Deliberately destroying archaeological remains you know about can have legal and planning consequences.
Summary
Three ways to check for scheduled monuments:
- Site report: check a site free, then open the £9.99 site report for the scheduled monument check
- Most detail: search the National Heritage List for England
- During a purchase: ask your solicitor which searches report scheduled monuments
If a scheduled monument is on your land, you need scheduled monument consent for any works to it. Even if it is nearby, its setting can affect planning decisions for your property.
Sources
- Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979, section 2: works needing consent, who grants it, penalties and defences
- NPPF (17 August 2026), chapter 20, policy HE6
- Historic England NHLE feature service, queried 19 October 2026: 20,003 scheduled monuments
Can you extend? Check permitted development and the rules on your street.
Check a site free for your council, whether you are in a conservation area, and a basic flood check. The site report (£9.99, one-off) adds everything else we can check within 500 m of your pin, for 30 days, with the source for each finding.
We show what we found, what came back clear, and where a source couldn’t be checked. Some councils don’t publish every dataset, so ask the council where it matters. Planning Constraints is a screening tool, not an official local authority search or professional advice.