Local heritage protection

State and local government have different responsibilities for heritage

Local councils are responsible for locally significant heritage places. The State government, through Heritage Victoria, Heritage Council of Victoria and First Peoples - State Relations - is responsible for state heritage, historical archaeology and Aboriginal cultural heritage.

Local councils

Locally significant heritage places are listed in the Heritage Overlay of a planning scheme and are protected under the Planning and Environment Act 1987.

Councils are responsible for:

• making recommendations about what to include in the heritage overlay
• making decisions about changes to places on the Heritage Overlay.

Heritage Victoria

Heritage Victoria is responsible for state significant heritage places, which are included in the Victorian Heritage Register, historical archaeological sites and shipwrecks. Heritage Victoria administers and regulates the Heritage Act 2017.

Their role includes:

• making recommendations about what to include in the Victorian Heritage Register
• making decisions about changes to places on the Register
• making recommendations about what to include in the Victorian Heritage Inventory
• making decisions about changes to places on the Inventory
• making decisions about access to shipwrecks
• enforcing the Heritage Act.

They also distribute grants for eligible places on the register.

Heritage Victoria makes decisions about changes to World Heritage and National Heritage listed properties in Victoria.

Heritage Victoria does not own or manage heritage properties.

Heritage Council of Victoria

The Heritage Council of Victoria is an independent statutory authority established under the Heritage Act.

It has different responsibilities to Heritage Victoria. The Heritage Council decides what to include in the Victorian Heritage Register. They are the review body for permit and consent decisions made by Heritage Victoria.

First Peoples – State Relations

First Peoples – State Relations, together with Traditional Owners and the Victorian Aboriginal Heritage Council, are responsible for Aboriginal cultural heritage in Victoria.

Find out more about First Peoples - State Relations

Heritage overlays

Places with heritage significance to a local area can be protected by a heritage overlay. A heritage overlay is part of a local planning scheme.

The rules for places included in the heritage overlay and a list of those places, is set out in Clause 43.01 of each planning scheme. Identifying locally significant heritage places.

Local councils are responsible for identifying and protecting places of local heritage significance. Section 4 of the Planning and Environment Act 1987 obliges councils to use their planning schemes to conserve and enhance buildings, areas or other places of local heritage significance.

Most local heritage places are identified through a heritage study, prepared by a heritage consultant. Heritage studies evaluate individual sites and broader precincts and are typically structured:

• Geographically: Covering an entire municipality, suburb or specific streetscape.
• Thematically: Focusing on a specific architectural style (e.g. Art Deco) or historical development period (e.g. Post-war Modernism).

A heritage study will usually include an assessment report or citation for each identified place. This will include a history and description of the place, an assessment of its heritage values, condition and integrity and a statement of significance.

Completed heritage studies can be viewed on your local council's website, inspected in person at local libraries or searched directly using the online catalogue of the Victorian Government Library Service.

The statement of significance is a key part of the citation. It identifies what is important, why it is important and how it is significant. It should clearly explain how the heritage place meets one or more of the heritage criteria set out in the Victorian Local Heritage Guidelines.

Amending the planning scheme

The findings and recommendations of the heritage study should be formally endorsed by Council prior to commencing the amendment process.

A planning scheme amendment for local heritage will generally involve changes to the Schedule to Clause 43.01 (Heritage Overlay), planning scheme maps and the Schedule to Clause 72.04 to specify a statement of significance or heritage design guidelines.

Find amendment resources on the planning scheme amendments webpage.

Download a template statement of significance from the amendment templates webpage.

Requesting an interim Heritage Overlay

Page last updated: 29/05/26