Save Britain's Heritage
Save Britain's Heritage is an independent UK charity, founded 1975, that campaigns to reuse historic buildings at risk of demolition through media, planning system and courts, anchored by its UK-wide Buildings at Risk Register of ~1,500 entries.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1975
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
What Save Britain's Heritage does
Save Britain's Heritage (legal name SAVE Britain's Heritage, registered charity no. 269129) is an independent UK non-profit founded in 1975 by Marcus Binney and John Harris in direct response to the V&A's 'Destruction of the Country House' exhibition. Headquartered at 70 Cowcross Street, London, the organisation campaigns to prevent the demolition and decay of historic buildings through media, the planning system, and the courts, working with local community groups, architects, planners and developers to propose alternative reuse visions.
Its operational platform centres on the Buildings at Risk (BaR) Register, a national database of listed and unlisted historic buildings that are vacant, derelict or at risk, compiled continuously since 1989 and now containing approximately 1,500 entries (including a record 208 additions in 2026). Around this data asset it layers an ACT NOW! advocacy tool kit, a publications and reports programme, walking tours and events, targeted campaigns (Smithfield Market, Liverpool Street Station, Wentworth Woodhouse, Anglia Square, Whitechapel), a Building of the Month editorial feature, and a media hub. The organisation makes no government funding claim: its revenue comes from Friends (£36-£45/yr) and Saviours (£250/yr) membership subscriptions, publications sales, individual donations, patron gifts and legacy bequests.
SAVE is led by President and founder Marcus Binney CBE and Director Henrietta Billings (in role since 2016), supported by a team of approximately eight core staff and ten trustees, with a wider network of volunteers, nominating professionals and partner organisations including Historic England, the National Trust, Scottish Civic Trust and SPAB Scotland. Notable recorded outcomes include the 1979 proposal to convert Bankside Power Station (now Tate Modern), the 2007 Dumfries House acquisition campaign, the Lancaster EIA planning-law precedent, the Grimsby Docks Conservation Area designation, and the April 2026 High Court judicial review that quashed approval of the 101 Whitechapel tower.
Save Britain's Heritage firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Save Britain's Heritage
- Legal name
- SAVE Britain's Heritage
- Website
- https://savebritainsheritage.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1975
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Save Britain's Heritage is an independent UK charity, founded 1975, that campaigns to reuse historic buildings at risk of demolition through media, planning system and courts, anchored by its UK-wide Buildings at Risk Register of ~1,500 entries.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Save Britain's Heritage industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Heritage Conservation Services
- NAICS
- Historical Sites (712120), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712), Historical Sites (71212)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Historic Preservation & Landmarks Conservation (BPAGAHAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Historic Preservation & Conservation Planning (BPAHAKAH), Museums & Heritage Sites (History, Science, Specialty) (BPAGAHAA), Cultural Heritage Institutions (Archives, Historic Houses, Monuments Foundations) (THAJADAI)
Keywords
Where Save Britain's Heritage is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Save Britain's Heritage business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel
Revenue model
- Friend/Saviour Subscriptions: Annual membership subscriptions providing priority booking, discounts on events and publications, SAVE Magazine twice yearly, and access to research archives. Saviour tier at £250/year offers greater involvement with special events.
- Publications Sales: Sale of heritage reports, books, and publications including Buildings at Risk Catalogues, campaign reports, and architectural guides. Prices range from £4 to £15.
- Donations and One-off Contributions: One-time donations from supporters to fund conservation advice, campaigns, and educational activities including publications, events, tours and films.
- Patron Donations: Significant donations from individual patrons, often supporting specific campaigns, appeals or publications.
- Legacy Gifts: Bequests left in wills to ensure long-term continuation of the organization's work.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Saviour membership - premium tier with greatest involvement |
| Subscription | Annual | Friend membership - standard supporter tier |
| Subscription | Annual | Under-30s Friend - discounted young supporter tier |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels8 records
Save Britain's Heritage product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Save Britain's Heritage is a registered charity that campaigns for the reuse of historic buildings threatened by demolition and decay. It maintains the UK-wide Buildings at Risk (BaR) register (since 1989) cataloguing approximately 1,500 at-risk historic properties, publishes reports and architectural guides, runs advocacy campaigns and walking tours, and operates a tiered Friends/Saviours membership programme. The organization is independent, receives no government funding, and works through media, the planning system and the courts to offer alternative reuse visions for threatened heritage assets.
Product overview
Save Britain's Heritage is a national charity that campaigns for the reuse of threatened historic buildings. The organization operates a unified advocacy platform consisting of the Buildings at Risk (BaR) Register, a publicly accessible database of approximately 1,500 at-risk historic properties across the UK established in 1989; the ACT NOW! Tool Kit providing guidance for community advocacy; published reports and books on heritage conservation; events and walking tours; targeted campaigns for specific buildings; a Building of the Month feature; Friends/Saviour membership subscriptions; volunteer programs; and a multimedia hub containing films and videos. The organization does not offer a technology product but rather provides educational, advocacy, and awareness services.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Buildings at Risk (BaR) Register A national UK-wide database of listed and unlisted historic buildings that are vacant, derelict or at risk, providing a public platform to advocate for their retention and reuse. Made free to all in 2025 as part of SAVE's 50th anniversary celebrations.
- ACT NOW! Tool Kit An interactive online toolkit providing guidance on how to help historic buildings threatened with demolition or redevelopment, including advice on advocacy, understanding building value, and taking action. Aimed at local community groups and concerned individuals.
- Heritage Publications Books, reports and catalogues on heritage conservation topics, including Buildings at Risk catalogs, architectural guides and campaign publications such as 'Big Saves', 'The Destruction of the Country House', and 'Boom not Bust'. Prices range from £4 to £15 with member discounts.
- Events and Walking Tours A programme of walking tours, online talks, Saviour tours and special events held across the UK, highlighting heritage cases and conservation issues. Saviour members receive priority booking and exclusive events.
- Friends and Saviour Membership Annual subscription membership programme with tiers including Under-30s Friend (£28/yr direct debit), Friend (£36/yr direct debit), and Saviour (£250/yr). Benefits include discounts on events, tours and publications, SAVE Magazine twice yearly, and access to research archives. Saviour tier adds priority booking and exclusive events.
Quantifiable outcome
- 670,000 potential new homes could be created by repurposing empty or underused historic buildings (Historic England research)
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Save Britain's Heritage
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Save Britain's Heritage technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
Save Britain's Heritage partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
13 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Nudge Community BuilderscorePartnership with Plymouth community organization as part of SAVE's 50th anniversary celebrations, collaborating on events and celebrating remarkable buildings. Partnership focused on 'From Vacant to Vibrant' reuse initiatives.
- Architects, engineers, planners and developerscoreSAVE works with built environment professionals to offer alternative visions for threatened places. These collaborations are designed to spark debate about contentious schemes and demonstrate that more imaginative approaches are possible for heritage-led development.
- Historic EnglandcoreCollaborated on campaigns including Anglia Square in Norwich. Historic England provided evidence and recommendations in SAVE's planning interventions. They have also supported SAVE's publications such as Rediscovered Utopias: Saving London's Suburbs.
- Whitechapel GalleryminorNeighbouring arts institution in East London for over 100 years. Jointly opposed the 101 Whitechapel development, raising concerns about commercial office development over community needs.
- Toynbee HallminorCommunity institution established in 1884, working to address poverty in East London. Allied with SAVE in challenging the Whitechapel tower development to protect community wellbeing.
- Scottish Civic TrustcoreCo-signatories on open letter urging Scottish minister to halt demolition of Hillhead Baptist Church. Joe Traynor, director, signed the letter organized by SAVE.
- SPAB ScotlandcoreScottish arm of the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings. Lucy Stewart, officer, co-signed the Hillhead Baptist Church preservation letter organized by SAVE.
- Architectural Heritage Society of ScotlandcoreJocelyn Cunliffe, chair, co-signed the open letter organized by SAVE regarding Hillhead Baptist Church demolition plans.
- Scotland's Churches TrustminorDr DJ Johnston-Smith, director, co-signed the letter to Scottish Deputy First Minister organized by SAVE.
- National TrustminorCommissioned joint report on heritage and carbon with SAVE, Grosvenor, Peabody, and The Crown Estate highlighting economic potential of heritage reuse (£35bn output, 105,000 jobs annually).
- Heritage NetworkcoreCollaboration on events including Hull walking tour. Heritage Network supports community organizations across the country to rescue, repurpose, and manage historic buildings for community benefit.
- Don't Waste BuildingsminorCampaign group providing evidence on environmental benefits of building reuse to parliamentary committees and policy discussions.
- GrosvenorminorCommissioned report on heritage and carbon alongside National Trust, Peabody, Historic England, and The Crown Estate quantifying reuse benefits.
Scale indicators10 records
Recent moves9 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Save Britain's Heritage competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB): The UK's longest-established heritage building charity (founded 1877), SPAB shares SAVE's mission of protecting historic buildings from harmful alteration or demolition. Both operate as independent advocacy charities and frequently co-sign campaigns, as seen in the 2026 Hillhead Baptist Church letter.
- The Twentieth Century Society: A heritage charity focused on post-1914 architecture that closely parallels SAVE's advocacy model. SAVE's director Henrietta Billings previously worked at the Twentieth Century Society, and the two organizations frequently collaborate on campaigns such as Battersea Power Station.
- Georgian Group: Period-specific heritage charity advocating for Georgian architecture in the UK, with the same independent advocacy, casework, and listed-building intervention model as SAVE. Both submit comments on planning applications and challenge inappropriate demolitions.
- Victorian Society: Period-specific heritage charity that campaigns for Victorian and Edwardian architecture using the same independent, government-funded advocacy model as SAVE. The two organizations operate as sister charities addressing different architectural eras.
- Ancient Monuments Society: Small UK heritage charity monitoring threats to ancient monuments and listed buildings, using a similar volunteer-supported casework model to SAVE's Buildings at Risk register.
Broad incumbents
- Historic England: The UK government's statutory adviser on historic environment, Historic England operates at much larger scale than SAVE with public funding. They are a core SAVE partner (Anglia Square, Rediscovered Utopias publication), reflecting overlap in heritage protection mission and constituency.
- National Trust: The UK's largest heritage charity, the National Trust owns and operates historic properties at scale. They co-commissioned the 2025 heritage-and-carbon report with SAVE, indicating overlap in advocacy around reuse-first policy.
- English Heritage: Self-funded public body that manages over 400 historic sites across England. While a broader heritage operator than SAVE's advocacy-focused model, English Heritage shares the heritage-protection mission and overlapping constituency of supporters and built-environment professionals.
Emerging players
- Heritage Network: UK-wide umbrella body supporting smaller heritage organizations rescuing historic buildings for community use. SAVE partners with Heritage Network on events like the Hull walking tour, and their missions converge on community-led reuse of at-risk buildings.
Others
- Architectural Heritage Fund: UK charity providing grants and advice for the reuse of historic buildings. While not a direct campaigner like SAVE, AHF's grantmaking complements SAVE's advocacy work and both serve overlapping communities restoring endangered heritage assets.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses3 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Save Britain's Heritage social profiles
Digital presenceSave Britain's Heritage financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Save Britain's Heritage leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
Save Britain's Heritage funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Save Britain's Heritage M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Save Britain's Heritage
What does Save Britain's Heritage do?
Save Britain's Heritage is a registered charity that campaigns for the reuse of historic buildings threatened by demolition and decay. It maintains the UK-wide Buildings at Risk (BaR) register (since 1989) cataloguing approximately 1,500 at-risk historic properties, publishes reports and architectural guides, runs advocacy campaigns and walking tours, and operates a tiered Friends/Saviours membership programme. The organization is independent, receives no government funding, and works through media, the planning system and the courts to offer alternative reuse visions for threatened heritage assets.
Is Save Britain's Heritage a public or private company?
Save Britain's Heritage is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Save Britain's Heritage founded?
Save Britain's Heritage was founded in 1975. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Save Britain's Heritage based?
Save Britain's Heritage is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Save Britain's Heritage make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Friend/Saviour Subscriptions are the primary driver. The others are publications Sales, donations and One-off Contributions, patron Donations and legacy Gifts.
Who are Save Britain's Heritage's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB), The Twentieth Century Society, Georgian Group, Victorian Society and Ancient Monuments Society. Broad incumbents are Historic England, National Trust and English Heritage. Heritage Network is listed as an emerging player. Architectural Heritage Fund is listed as an others.
Does Save Britain's Heritage have an API?
No public API is recorded for Save Britain's Heritage.
What industry is Save Britain's Heritage in?
Save Britain's Heritage's product category is Heritage Conservation Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGAHAE, Historic Preservation & Landmarks Conservation, with a secondary code of BPAHAKAH, Historic Preservation & Conservation Planning. Its NAICS code is 712120.