Curators - do you dig 'em?

[Alfie]

My particular set up here means I am part of the Planning Directorate of the Local Authority. I work with legal teams and enforcement to put together planning conditions which are tailored to each case. Whether or not they are accepted is down to either the planning commitee or the case Officer. Generally they are pretty good about taking my advice, but some of the more lazy ones will see archaeology on the list of material considerations and put on a standard condition which is a watching brief.I think the assumption amongst planners and developers is that I personally want permission to come to the site with a trowel and start digging. To get diggers on site I have to firstly identify the site, assess the likelhood that there is something there, advise the developer through the planning process for a pre-determination evaluation, set a brief, monitor the works, sign off the works, agree a mitigation strategy with loss adjusting consultants,write conditions with enforcement and legal teams, get the advice I give accepted by a commitee of local councillors who have no idea about archaeology but who would rather like a housing estate with their names on the roads, agree a WSI from the contractor, monitor the excavation, sign off the site and wait lamely for the report and archive (which although has a time limit set on it in the conditions is un-enforcable). I currently have 32 sites on the go, seven of which are over 20 hectares and one windfarm.
I always talk to diggers on site and I personally beleieve that I am here to do the best possible job for the archaeology( and besides I rather like archaeologists) that includes providing a list of local b&b's to project officers and JCB hire company addresses, and lending contractors my level if theirs breaks, or printing documents off on my computer for contractors who are miles from head office.