English Heritage /

English Heritage (officially the Historic Building and Monuments Commission for England). is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). Simon Thurley has been chief executive since 2002. By caring for the built environment, English Heritage complements the work of Natural England which aims to protect the natural environment. It has a broad remit of managing the historic built environment of England and advises the relevant Secretary of State on policy and in individual cases such as registering Listed buildings and Scheduled Ancient Monuments. It was set up under the terms of the National Heritage Act 1983. Its functions for maintaining ancient monuments had previously been undertaken by part of the Department of the Environment which was the successor to the Ministry of Works. The 1983 Act also dissolved the bodies that had hitherto provided independent advice — the Ancient Monuments Board for England and the Historic Buildings Council for England and incorporated these functions in the new body. Another advisory body, the Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England (RCHME) was