1. What are blue plaques?
2. How to propose a blue plaque
3. The selection criteria for blue plaques
4. The stages of the scheme
5. Council plaque schemes
6. Tips on making a successful blue plaque application
7. Feedback and comments

1. What are blue plaques?

Blue plaques are the blue ceramic discs visible on the façades of buildings throughout London and parts of the United Kingdom. Plaques mark the houses in which great men and women have lived or where they have performed or created important works.
Plaques signify a building's famous links
There are plaques to poets such as John Keats and Sylvia Plath, writers such as James Joyce and Enid Blyton, scientists such as Charles Darwin and musicians including Mozart, Handel and Jimi Hendrix. There are also plaques for campaigners, reformers and politicians.

The official Blue Plaque scheme is run by English Heritage. It focuses on London and a few other locations--Liverpool and Merseyside, Birmingham, Portsmouth and Southampton--with plans to extend the scheme to more cities in the future.

Some city councils do have their own schemes for erecting plaques but these have separate procedures and are not in co-ordination with English Heritage.

^^back to top 2. How to propose a blue plaque

Anybody can propose a blue plaque. English Heritage receives about 100 suggestions for blue plaques each year. Proposers include experts in specific fields, members of professional societies, relatives of suggested individuals or those who occupy a house once lived in by a famous figure. Proposals may be inspired by significant anniversaries such as centenaries.

Blue plaques are managed by English Heritage, sometimes in association with local authorities. If you want to propose a blue plaque, you should first make sure that your figure meets with the selection criteria.

Plaques are not intended to be memorials. They are to draw attention to buildings with special associations - for example, the flat where a writer penned a famous work, or a home where a famous figure lived.

Once you have compiled all the necessary information, suggestions for blue plaques should be addressed to:

Blue Plaques Team
Room 120
English Heritage
23 Savile Road
London, W1S 2ET

Completed proposals can be emailed to: plaques@english-heritage.org.uk

^^back to top 3. The selection criteria for blue plaques
Keats' work is recognised by a blue plaque
Although the Blue Plaque scheme began in the nineteenth century, a formal set of criteria was not adopted until 1954.

• The most important rule is the 20 year rule. To be eligible for a plaque, the proposed person must have been dead for 20 years or have passed the centenary of their birth, whichever is earlier


• The figure should be considered eminent by a majority of members of their profession or have made an important contribution to human welfare


• The figure should be recognisable to the well-informed passer-by


• They should deserve national recognition

If the figure is a foreigner or an overseas visitor they should have an international reputation or significant standing in their own country and their time in London should have been a significant period within their life or work.

Additional points to note:

• Proposals will be considered for the commemoration of sites with special historical interest


• Plaques will not be erected on the sites of former residences occupied by famous people


• Only one plaque is allowed per person


• A building will not be marked just because it figures in a work of fiction

^^back to top 4. The stages of the scheme

After receiving a proposal for the erection of a blue plaque the scheme proceeds through a number of stages:

Proposal
A short biographical report of the figure is prepared by an English Heritage historian. The proposal is then considered by the Blue Plaques Panel. If the panel rejects the suggestion then the application will not be able to go any further. Proposers must wait 10 years before their suggestion is considered again. If the panel is unable to reach a decision, either further research is required by English Heritage historians or a suggested figure is put on hold for a few years to be reconsidered in the future.

Shortlisting
If a proposal is shortlisted an English Heritage historian prepares a full report focussing particularly on possible addresses for the plaque. A house is chosen on the basis of the length of residence at the address and the achievements of the figure during this time. This historical report is then submitted to the Blue Plaques Panel who may suggest changes to details before the report is finally endorsed.

Consent
The satisfaction of a successful applicationOwners and tenants of the buildings on which the plaque is to be placed need to give their consent to the erection of a plaque. If the building is listed, consent must come from the relevant local authority. If the owner of tenant refuses permission, English Heritage will try to find another suitable address for the plaque.

Final stages
The final stages of the process involve the design and placing of the plaque, gaining the final consents for the erection of the plaque, the manufacture and finally the erection. In some circumstances, for instance where there are anniversaries, an unveiling ceremony may be appropriate.

From start to finish the erection of a blue plaque can take up to two or three years.

^^back to top 5. Council plaque schemes

Some city councils have started up their own blue plaque scheme. This is unrelated to the English Heritage scheme. Their selection criteria are broadly similar but do vary from council to council so it is worth checking with the individual council’s conservation team. For example, the Cambridge Blue Plaque scheme only requires a figure to have been dead for ten years before erecting a plaque. Contact the conservation team of your local council for more information.

^^back to top 6. Tips on making a successful Blue Plaque application

Research your nominee
Before you send in a proposal do your research. Make sure that the person has been dead for 20 years or more and that there is a surviving place of residence. English Heritage will also normally require a couple of pages of biographical information.

Ring up first
It is advisable to ring up English Heritage or the council first of all. Someone may already have a plaque or the suggestion may have been rejected in the past ten years. So a preliminary call may save a lot of unnecessary trouble.

^^back to top 7. Feedback and comments

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