Orion Heritage

What Orion Heritage does

Orion Heritage is an independent specialist archaeology and built heritage consultancy established in June 2015 by Rob Bourn and Dr Rob Smith. The firm operates from three UK locations — Brighton (headquarters), Manchester, and Little Rissington in the Cotswolds — with a team of 18 professionals including accredited archaeologists (CIfA), built heritage specialists (IHBC), and chartered architects (RIBA). It serves the planning, development and construction sectors, with a named enterprise client roster spanning housebuilders (Taylor Wimpey, Bloor Homes, Piper Homes, Wavensmere Homes, Hayfield Homes, Rydon Homes), strategic land promoters (Catesby Estates, Hallam Land Management, Harworth Group), commercial real estate consultancies (Avison Young, Savills, RCE), financial services (Legal & General), renewable energy developers (Lightsource, EDF Renewables UK), and urban regeneration (Ballymore, London Borough of Hounslow).

The firm's core product is a unified suite of professional consultancy services centred on archaeological assessment and built heritage analysis for development projects. Specific offerings include desk-based assessments, geophysical surveys, archaeological evaluation and excavation management, historic building recording, heritage impact assessments, environmental impact assessment chapters, heritage management planning, and expert witness services for Public Inquiries, Hearings and Written Representations. Service delivery relies on professional expertise and conventional geospatial tools (ArcGIS, AutoCAD, Adobe Creative Suite) rather than proprietary technology platforms; notable recent technical outputs include facilitating planning permission for major schemes (2,380 homes at South Marston, 5,500 homes at Sherford New Town, 876 homes at The Brentford Project) and successful appeal outcomes on contested heritage grounds.

The revenue model is professional services / consultancy fees, with quote-based pricing determined by project scope and complexity. The go-to-market is direct enterprise field sales targeting landowners, developers, land promoters, and their agents, supplemented by thought leadership through the company website's Insights blog, project case studies, and public outreach for high-profile archaeological discoveries. Orion holds CIfA Registered Organisation status, IHBC accreditation, and employs RIBA chartered specialists, providing third-party-validated quality credentials that distinguish it from non-accredited competitors. The firm maintains founder control under Rob Bourn (Managing Director), Dr Rob Smith (Board member), and Jane Bourn (Practice Manager and in-house Solicitor), with no external institutional investors or parent company.

Name

Orion Heritage

Legal name

Orion Heritage Limited

Website

https://orionheritage.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Orion Heritage is an independent UK archaeology and built heritage consultancy advising developers, landowners, and planning authorities on heritage risk across planning, development, and construction projects from three offices.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Heritage and Archaeology Consultancy

NAICS

Historical Sites (712120), Architectural Services (54131)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Historic Preservation & Conservation Planning (BPAHAKAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

Historic Sites, Heritage Landmarks & Archaeological Sites (THAJACAC)

Keywords

• Archaeology consultancy
• Built heritage
• Heritage assessment
• Historic building recording
• Planning consultancy

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Heritage Consultancy Services: Professional consultancy fees for archaeological and built heritage assessment, expert witness services, heritage management planning, and environmental impact assessment services. Services are provided to developers, landowners, and planning authorities across the UK development sector.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Orion Heritage provides specialist archaeology and built heritage consultancy services for planning, development and construction projects across the UK. The firm guides development projects through heritage legislation and planning from land acquisition and due diligence through to construction, delivering archaeological assessments, historic building recording, heritage impact assessments, and expert witness services for appeals and public inquiries.

Product overview

Orion Heritage is an independent specialist archaeology and built heritage consultancy established in 2015. The company offers a unified suite of professional consulting services centered on archaeological assessment, built heritage analysis, and heritage planning compliance. Core offerings include archaeology services, built heritage services, land acquisition due diligence, archaeological evaluation and excavation, historic building recording, environmental impact assessment, heritage management planning, and expert witness services. The company operates as a service-based consultancy rather than a software product, providing expert advice to the planning, development, and construction sectors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Archaeology Services

Quantifiable outcome

• Planning permission secured for major developments including 2,380 homes at South Marston, 5,500 homes at Sherford New Town, 876 homes at The Brentford Project
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers17 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and preferred.

• Historic EnglandcoreOthersWorking relationship with Historic England for agreeing evaluation and mitigation approaches for heritage projects including The Brentford Project. Historic England is the government's statutory adviser for the historic environment.
• Devon County CouncilcoreOthersInformed negotiations with Devon County Council to agree pragmatic approaches to evaluation and excavation for Sherford New Town project. Orion works with the Council's archaeological advisors on planning conditions.
• Cambridgeshire County CouncilcoreOthersNegotiations with Cambridgeshire County Council to agree timely and cost-effective approaches to mitigation investigations for archaeological planning conditions at Millstone Park, Burwell.
• Ministry of JusticecoreOthersLegal process management with Ministry of Justice and Department for Levelling Up, Homes and Communities to agree archaeologically-led exhumation and reinterment of burials at The Brentford Project.
• Oxford Archaeology EastpreferredImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerAppointed archaeological contractor for excavations at Millstone Park, Burwell. Partnership with specialist field archaeologists for delivering high-quality archaeological investigations.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Pre-Construct Archaeology: UK archaeological consultancy delivering heritage assessments, fieldwork, and post-excavation services for developers, planners, and local authorities — directly comparable in service scope and customer profile.
• Archaeological Research Services Ltd: A UK heritage and archaeological consultancy of similar scale to Orion, providing desk-based assessment, fieldwork, and built heritage services to the planning and development sector with comparable CIfA accreditation.
• MOLA (Museum of London Archaeology): Independent archaeological and heritage consultancy operating across planning, development, and infrastructure projects in the UK — competing directly for the same developer and local authority mandates on heritage assessment and fieldwork.
• Headland Archaeology: UK and Ireland-based archaeological consultancy providing heritage services for planning, infrastructure, and renewable energy projects — overlapping with Orion on EIA heritage chapters, evaluation work, and developer client base.
• Oxford Archaeology: A major UK heritage and archaeology consultancy delivering desk-based assessments, fieldwork, and post-excavation services across planning and development — and an existing implementation partner of Orion Heritage, making it both a competitor and a subcontractor in the same ecosystem.
• Wessex Archaeology: One of the largest archaeological and heritage consultancies in the UK, providing planning-stage heritage assessment, fieldwork, and built heritage services to developers, local authorities, and infrastructure clients — directly comparable in service mix and customer base to Orion Heritage.
• Cotswold Archaeology: UK-wide archaeological and built heritage consultancy offering the same planning-stage heritage services, expert witness work, and fieldwork management as Orion, with comparable CIfA-registered status and a developer-facing client mix.

Broad incumbents

• AECOM: Global infrastructure and environmental consultancy with a heritage and archaeology practice serving planning, development, and renewable energy clients — overlaps on large EIA and infrastructure bids where Orion also competes.
• RPS Group: Large multinational consultancy delivering heritage, environmental, and planning services as part of broader development and infrastructure mandates — competes with Orion for major scheme work but does not specialise in the heritage niche.

Emerging players

• Rubicon Heritage Services: A specialist heritage consultancy providing archaeological and built heritage services across the UK and Ireland — a smaller, emerging competitor in the same niche with similar service offerings for the planning sector.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/orion-heritage

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles20 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Orion Heritage