Profile

Biography

 

Malcolm A Cooper obtained his first degree in Ancient History and Archaeology (with special competence in practical archaeology) at the University of Birmingham before taking a MPhil in Computer Applications in Archaeology at the University of Staffordshire and a Diploma in Management Studies at the University of Central England (awarded with distinction). He became a field archaeologist with Birmingham University Field Archaeology Unit and with Hereford and Worcester County Council, supervising and directing excavations across Britain before becoming the County Archaeologist for the County Council and managing its field unit.

He joined English Heritage as an Inspector of Ancient Monuments in 1993, and during his 13 years with them he held a variety of posts including Head of the Thames and Chilterns Team, Head of the Cathedrals Team, Head of the North and East London Team, Deputy Director of London Region (where he was responsible for managing their historic property portfolio in London), Regional Director for the North West Region and finally Territory Director for the North. He left English Heritage in 2005 to become Historic Scotland’s Chief Inspector where he was a member of the senior management team and Board and was responsible for designation, statutory and non-statutory advice and grant-aid with a team of 140 staff. After 6 years he left Historic Scotland in 2011 to set up the Malcolm A Cooper Consultancy which provides historic environment advisory services.

Publications

Full publications list

 

with Cambell, J. (forthcoming 2011) Encyclopedia of Scottish Planning Law, Chapter 12, The Historic Environment.

Forthcoming (2011). Scotland’s Historic Environment: looking to the future in a re-emergent nation. In Aitchison, K. et. al.(ed) Globalized  Archaeology. Springer.

2010

Protecting our Past: Political Philosophy, Regulation, and Heritage Management in England and Scotland  The Historic Environment, 1, 2, November 2010, 143-159.

Cultural regeneration: architecture and heritage as a character in the narrative. Royal Incorporation of Architects of Scotland Journal, summer 2010, 60-63.

Future? What Future. In Scotland: Building for the Future: Transactions. Historic Scotland, ed. Cooper and Mays., 74-83.

with Mays, D. (eds). Scotland: Building for the Future: Transactions. Historic Scotland.

Protecting our Modern Heritage. In Scotland: Building for the Future, Historic Scotland, 98-101.

2008

This is not a Monument: Rhetorical Destruction and the Social Context of Cultural Resource Management. Public Archaeology, 7, 1, 17-30.

Preserving Edinburgh’s Heritage. Prospect Magazine, spring 2008, 79.

2005

Exploring Gaskell’s Legacy: competing constructions of the industrial historic environment in England’s North West. In Industrial Archaeology: future directions, edited by E. Casella and J. Symonds, 155-173.

2004

My Favourite Building – Chetham’s School and Library. Prospect Magazine, May 2004, 48.

Managing Change in England’s Historic Urban Environment. Proceedings of Shanghai International Symposium on Conservation of Historical Architecture and Historical Areas, 186-208.

Managing Change in England’s Historic Urban Environment. Proceedings of Shanghai International Symposium on Conservation of Historical Architecture and Historical Areas, 186-208.

Introduction. In Played in Manchester. English Heritage.

2002.

A Sporting Chance: Extra time for England’s historic sports venues. English Heritage.

with Taylor, S. and Barnwell, P.S. Manchester: the Warehouse Legacy. English Heritage

with Baker, N. (eds). Shrewsbury Abbey, Excavations 1995-1998. In Baker, N. (ed) 2002. Shrewsbury Abbey. Shropshire Archaeological and Historical Society Monograph series 2, 69-179.

2001.

The Liverpool Project: Pursuing Urban Strategies. Conservation Bulletin, 41, 22-23.

1995.

Meeting the challenge of organisational uncertainty. The Field Archaeologist, 23, 7-11.

The Archaeological Manager: applying management models to archaeology. In Cooper et al 1995, 71-88.

with Firth, A., Carman, J. and Wheatley, D. (eds). Managing Archaeology. London, Routledge.

1993.

Archaeology and Management Perspectives. The Field Archaeologist 18.

with Dinn, J.L. Computers and the evolution of archaeological organisations. British Archaeological Reports, International Series 598, 89-94. 

1991

with Huggett, J.W. The computer representation of space in urban archaeology. British Archaeological Reports, International Series 565, 39-42.

1985

Computers in British Archaeology: the need for a national strategy. In Cooper and Richards 1985, 79-91.

with Richards, J.D. (eds). Current Issues in Archaeological Computing. BAR International Series 271.

Research

Overview

 

In my early career I specialised in urban archaeology and I have maintained a strong interest in the archaeology and development of towns in Britain. This has developed into a broader interest in architecture, conservation and adaptive re-use, regeneration and placemaking in Britain and Europe, an interest that I have pursued in my various roles with English Heritage (such as in Liverpool and Manchester) and with Historic Scotland.

Throughout my career I have maintained an interest in management techniques as applied both to the historic environment and to those organisations involved in its management. This led to a Routledge volume, Managing Archaeology, edited with John Carman, Tony Firth and Dave Wheatley in 1995 and I have continued to research, write, lecture and train more broadly on heritage management in the United Kingdom. I have recently co-edited and contributed to a volume on post-War architecture in Scotland with my particular interest focussing on the political issues of statutory protection of modern buildings.

My recent research interests have focussed on the development of political philosophy in relation to regulation and cultural resource management in the UK. This investigates in particular the interface between heritage management, government and wider society.

Current projects

PhD research on political philosophy, regulation and heritage management (part-time research, University of Edinburgh)

Monograph on heritage management in Britain (forthcoming)

Scottish Planning Encyclopaedia, the Historic Environment Legislation in Scotland (co-authored with John Campbell QC) Sweet and Maxwell, forthcoming 2011

External activities

Memberships

 Director of the Malcolm A Cooper Consultancy

Council member of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 2009-2012

Member of the Institute for Archaeologists (MIFA)

Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London (FSA)

Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland (FSA Scot)

Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute (MCIM)

Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA)

Hon. Fellow of the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (Hon FRIAS)

Hon Research Fellow at the Department of Classics and Archaeology at the University of Edinburgh.

Editorial duties

Editorial Board of The Historic Environment: Policy and Practice. Maney Publishing.