We champion historic places. By standing up for historic places, everyone, from individuals and communities to government and major landowners, can look after and care for heritage. We make sure they understand and appreciate the benefits England's heritage brings and why it should be respected, cherished and enhanced. We open up heritage for everyone, using digital resources, media campaigns, our unsurpassed archive, publishing, and exhibitions. We identify and protect our heritage. Protecting historic places through the designation system is at the heart of what we do, as expert advisor to the government. We manage the National Heritage List for England: from its origins in 1882, it has grown to include almost 400,000 items ranging from prehistoric monuments to office blocks, battlefields and parks. They all benefit from legal protection. We support change. We want people to use and enjoy historic places in ways that reveal and reinforce their significance, and safeguard their setting in a wider landscape. Each year we give advice on more than 20,000 applications for planning permission or listed building consent. We help make sure that threats to our heritage are understood, so policies, effort and investment can be targeted effectively. Last year, we provided £13 million in grants to reduce the amount of heritage at risk. We share our understanding of the significance of EnglandÍs places. Using cutting-edge science, research, and information, we help people manage historic places, both physically and economically. We share our knowledge through training, guidance, conservation advice and access to resources, including the Historic England Archive, the biggest national collection of records about the historic environment. We deliver national expertise at a local level. Our staff specialise in assessment, processing grants, giving advice to owners, developers and local authorities, as well as designation, heritage data, and government policy.