EU publications

Evaluation of the European heritage label action

Final report - Study

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This report presents findings of a study supporting the evaluation of the European Heritage Label Action. The evaluation was carried out as required by Article 18 of Decision 1194/2011/EU, which established the action. The evaluation aimed to assess the implementation of the European Heritage Label action during the first six years of its existence (2011-2017), with a view to improving its implementation in the upcoming period. The evaluation has been executed in accordance with the principles of Better Regulation. As the action is still in its early stages of implementation, this interim... evaluation assessed the impact of the action to a limited extent, and focused mainly on the operation of the action: which processes work well; which should be improved; and how this improvement might be best achieved. In addition, the evaluation sought to answer fundamental questions such as whether the action is sustainable, whether its geographical scope should be widened, and whether it should be continued. The evaluation covers the period of 2011-2017, and focuses in particular on the period following the first selection of sites in 2013. In-depth analysis includes 29 sites that received the European Heritage Label before 2017, plus a number of sites that were not selected sites, spread across 16 Member States. In addition, some parts of the analysis include all 38 sites that have been designated with the Label to date, so as to provide a comprehensive picture of the action.