About the Suffolk Archaeological Service

The Archaeological Service is the main provider of archaeological advice in Suffolk. In order to promote the conservation, enhancement and understanding of Suffolk's distinctive historic environment, we:

• maintain a record of archaeology and heritage assets, the Historic Environment Record
• provide advice to planners, developers and farmers
• identify and record finds made by members of the public
• curate an archive for fieldwork projects carried out in the county
• publish the results of fieldwork and other research into Suffolk's past

For more details regarding each of the above services provided by the archaeological team, please see the individual topic pages on our homepage.

Planning-led archaeological advice and regulation have been carried out by the County Council on behalf of all six planning authorities since the issue of Planning Policy Guidance notes 15 and 16 in 1990.

The six planning authorities are:

• Babergh and Mid Suffolk District Council
• East Suffolk Council
• West Suffolk Council
• Ipswich Borough Council
• Suffolk County Council
• Broads Authority

The core elements of PPG 15 and 16 remain the same in the National Planning Policy Framework 2021.

Service charges and online application forms

There is a charge for a number of the services provided by the archaeological team including planning, The Historic Environment Record (HER) and archive services.

To request any of the services covered by the charging schedule from the Archaeology Team, please see below links to the online application forms which need to be completed:

• Archaeological brief and specification form
• Historic Environment Record data request form
• Historic Environment Record parish code request form
• Archive Deposition request form

Publications

Suffolk County Council Archaeological Service sells a number of publications relating to archaeological sites in the county. If you would like to order a publication, download and complete a publication order form on the Suffolk Heritage Explorer website.

Suffolk Heritage Explorer

The Suffolk Heritage Explorer is a website dedicated to the archaeology of Suffolk, including access to the Suffolk Historic Environment Record; information on current and historic archaeological projects carried out in Suffolk; useful archaeological resources and guides; the Suffolk County Council Archaeological Services blog; and much more.

Contact details

There are several ways to get in touch:

• email archaeology@suffolk.gov.uk
• call 01284 741230
• Twitter, Facebook or Instagram

We're based at:

Suffolk County Council Archaeological Service,
Bury Resource Centre,
Hollow Road,
Bury St Edmunds,
IP32 7AY