Cornwall Archaeological Unit (CAU)

Fal Building County Hall
Truro
Cornwall
TR1 3AY
United Kingdom

Tel: +44 (0)1872322534 / +44 (0)7703885770
Email: ayoung@cau.org.uk
Web: http://www.cau.org.uk

Primary Contact

Andrew Young

Andrew Young

CAU Manager

Tel: +44 (0)1872322534 / +44 (0)7703885770
Email: ayoung@cau.org.uk

Company Profile

Cornwall Archaeological Unit (CAU) is the archaeological contracting arm of Cornwall Council, and has been undertaking research into and the recording of Cornwall’s history and landscape development (including its industrial sites and landscapes) for over two and a half decades, building up an extensive knowledge base which is curated by the Cornwall and isles of Scilly Historic Environment Record (HER). CAU is a Registered Organisation with the Chartered Institute for Archaeologists (CIfA) the professional organisation representing and regulating archaeology within Britain, and the majority of its staff have been elected as individual members of the CIfA and are subject to the CIfA standards and code of conduct. As part of Cornwall Council, Cornwall Archaeological Unit is covered by Public and Employers Liability Insurance, with a policy value of £50m. The Council also has Professional Negligence insurance with a policy value of £10m.

All recording work is undertaken according to CIfA Standards and staff follow the CIfA Code of Conduct and Code of Approved Practice for the Regulation of Contractual Arrangements in Field Archaeology.

CAU is committed to conserving and enhancing the distinctiveness of the historic environment and heritage of Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly by providing clients with a number of services including:

  • Conservation works to sites and monuments
  • Conservation surveys and management plans
  • Historic landscape characterisation
  • Town surveys for conservation and regeneration
  • Historic building surveys and analysis
  • Maritime and coastal zone assessments
  • Air photo mapping
  • Excavations and watching briefs
  • Assessments and evaluations
  • Post-excavation analysis and publication
  • Outreach: exhibitions, publication, presentations

CAU have undertaken large-scale assessments of the industrial landscapes of West Penwith, Bodmin Moor, the Tamar Valley, the St. Agnes area, the Hensbarrow Moors, the Luxulyan Valley and the central mining district (amongst others), developed the successful bid for World Heritage status for key mining landscapes in Cornwall and West Devon, are specialists in the recording and interpretation of industrial landscapes, sites and structures and regularly undertake specialised consultancy work for public, charitable and private clients during conservation and safety projects involving industrial sites, structures and features. Our long experience in this field has thus allowed us to develop an in-depth understanding of Cornwall’s industrial heritage.

CAU has access to a sophisticated GIS-based database which brings together a wide range of historic mapping, landscape and individual designations, historic landscape characterisation, the results of previous assessments, evalua tions, excavations and building recording and datasets derived from aerial photographic plots, geophysical surveys and the analysis of other data.