Archaeological written scheme of investigation outline
The written scheme of investigation has a conventional structure. Here is each section in order, what it has to answer, and how the document maps onto discharging the condition.
Most archaeological conditions are discharged on a document nobody outside archaeology has read: the written scheme of investigation. It is a defined document with a conventional structure, written by the archaeological contractor to the standards of the Chartered Institute for Archaeologists, and approved by the local authority's archaeological adviser before any work starts. Knowing the section order lets you read a draft properly and spot the gaps that cost time later.
What follows is that structure, section by section, with the questions each part has to answer.
Why the document exists and who approves it
Planning permissions on sites of archaeological interest usually carry a condition in two or three parts: no development until a written scheme of investigation has been submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority, the fieldwork to be carried out in accordance with the approved scheme, and the post-excavation work and archive deposition to be completed within a stated period.
The authority takes advice from a county archaeologist, a district archaeologist or a historic environment record officer, and it is that adviser who reads the scheme in substance. Note the wording carefully, because approval by the adviser is not the same as approval in writing by the authority, and a discharge application that relies on an adviser's email alone is incomplete.
The front matter
Open with the site name and address, the planning application reference, the condition number being discharged, the national grid reference, the client, the contractor, the document version and date, and the name and institute membership of the project manager. Add a distribution list. This page is the one a case officer reads.
Archaeological and historical background
This section summarises the evidence already gathered rather than repeating it in full. It draws on the desk-based assessment, the historic environment record search, any geophysical survey, historic mapping, aerial photography and the results of work on adjacent sites.
It ends with a deposit model: what remains are expected, at what depth, in what condition, and how confident the prediction is. The deposit model is what the methodology has to answer, and a scheme whose trenching plan bears no relationship to its own deposit model will come back with comments.
Research aims and objectives
State aims that can be tested. For an evaluation, the aims are usually to establish the presence or absence of archaeological remains, and where present to establish their date, extent, character, condition, quality and significance, sufficient to inform a mitigation decision.
Tie the aims to the regional research framework for the area, because curators expect it and because it is what justifies the specialist work later. Where the site lies close to a known monument or a period of particular local interest, set a specific objective addressing it rather than leaving the aims generic.
Methodology for each stage of work
Write this section as a set of numbered procedures a field team could follow without asking questions.
- Site preparation: services searches, notification of the curator, fencing, welfare, access routes, and constraints from trees, ecology and contamination.
- Machining: the type of machine, the toothless bucket requirement, removal in controlled spits under archaeological supervision, and the point at which machining stops.
- Hand excavation: sampling strategies for linear features, discrete features and structures, expressed as percentages.
- Recording: the single context recording system or equivalent, the context sheet series, plans and sections at stated scales, digital survey method and photographic record.
- Environmental sampling: sample sizes, the features targeted, and processing arrangements.
- Human remains: the stop, the notification, the licensing route and the standards for lifting and recording where removal is authorised.
- Reinstatement: backfilling, compaction and the condition the ground is left in.
Where more than one stage is covered by the same document, such as an evaluation followed by a watching brief, set out each stage separately with its own trigger. A single blended methodology is the most common weakness in draft schemes.
Staffing, timetable and monitoring
Name the project manager and state the supervisory structure and the number of field staff. Give indicative durations for each stage and the notice period the curator will receive before work starts, which is usually a week or more.
Set out the monitoring arrangements: when the curator will be invited to visit, how variations to the scheme will be requested and recorded, and who has authority to agree a change on site. Then state the health and safety framework, including the construction regulations that apply, the risk assessment and method statement, and the arrangements for contaminated ground or unexploded ordnance where the site history warrants it. The same discipline applies to any pre-commencement submission, which is why the checklist before submitting a prior approval application works in the same way.
Finds, samples and archive deposition
Cover retention and discard policies, conservation arrangements for fragile material, the specialists who will assess each material class, and the treasure reporting procedure.
Archive deposition deserves more attention than it usually receives. Name the receiving museum, confirm that it accepts deposits and on what terms, state the accession number where one has been issued, and state the charge. Where no museum will take the archive, say so and set out the alternative arrangement agreed with the curator. Discovering at the end of a project that the local museum closed its stores years ago is a familiar and avoidable problem.
Include the transfer of title arrangement, since the landowner ordinarily owns the finds and has to agree to transfer them with the archive.
Reporting and publication
State what will be produced and when.
| Output | Content | Typical timing |
|---|---|---|
| Interim statement | Summary of what was found, for the curator and client | Within weeks of fieldwork ending |
| Client report | Full description, illustrations, specialist assessments, conclusions | After specialist assessment |
| Historic environment record entry | Summary for the county record | On completion of the report |
| Online index entry | Standard record of the intervention | On completion |
| Publication | Article or monograph where results merit it | Agreed case by case |
The scheme should also commit to an updated project design if the assessment shows that further analysis is warranted, with the scope and funding to be agreed at that point rather than assumed now.
Discharging the archaeological condition
Work back from what the condition actually says.
Where the condition requires only that the scheme be approved before development starts, the discharge application is the scheme plus the fee. Where it requires the fieldwork to be completed, you need the scheme approved, the fieldwork done in accordance with it, and the report submitted and accepted by the adviser. Where it requires archive deposition, you need the museum's confirmation, which can lag the fieldwork by a year or more.
Three habits make the process shorter. Submit the draft scheme to the adviser informally before the formal discharge application, so comments come back without consuming the statutory period. Ask the adviser to copy their advice to the case officer, so the written approval follows promptly. And keep the correspondence trail, because on a phased scheme the same condition may be discharged several times over several years by several different officers.
Where the results are extensive enough to change the layout, the planning case has to be revisited too, and the evidence base for the whole application shifts with it. Reserved matters phases raise the same document sequencing questions, which the outline planning application checklist covers from the application side. Browse the 66 report types on PlanScope to see where archaeology sits among the rest of the documents a major scheme carries.
PlanScope provides AI-assisted draft reports for planning applications. Reports should be reviewed before submission. We do not guarantee planning approval.
Frequently asked questions
What sections does a written scheme of investigation contain?
Front matter identifying the site and condition, archaeological and historical background ending in a deposit model, research aims and objectives, methodology for each stage of work, staffing and timetable with monitoring arrangements, health and safety, finds and archive arrangements, and reporting and publication commitments.
Who approves the scheme?
The local planning authority approves it in writing, taking advice from a county or district archaeologist or a historic environment record officer. That adviser does the substantive review. An email from the adviser is not by itself the authority's written approval, so check what your condition requires before treating it as discharged.
What is a deposit model?
A statement of what archaeological remains are expected on the site, at what depth, in what condition and with what confidence, built from the desk-based assessment, historic environment record data, geophysics and results from neighbouring sites. The methodology has to answer the deposit model, and mismatches between the two attract comments.
Why does archive deposition cause problems?
Because museum capacity is limited and charges apply. Name the receiving museum in the scheme, confirm it accepts deposits and on what terms, and record the accession number and charge. Where no museum will accept the archive, agree an alternative with the curator in advance rather than discovering the problem after fieldwork.
How do I discharge an archaeological condition?
Read the condition first, because what it requires varies. Approval of the scheme alone, completion of fieldwork and an accepted report, or full archive deposition are all common formulations. Send the draft scheme informally to the adviser before the formal application, and keep the correspondence for later phases.
Sources and further reading
This article is general guidance about the planning system in England and, where stated, the rest of the UK. It is not legal or professional advice. Check your local planning authority’s validation requirements and take professional advice for your specific site.