Photographic Archival Recording Checklist (NSW)

This is a scannable checklist of what a complete Photographic Archival Recording (PAR) contains under the 2023 Heritage Council of NSW guideline. It’s a reference for architects, owners and builders who want to know what to expect from a PAR deliverable — either to brief their heritage consultant properly, or to sense-check a draft before lodgement.

We don’t publish a downloadable template, deliberately. The value of a PAR is in the heritage analysis underlying the document, not in the structure of the document itself. A template filled in by someone without heritage qualifications will satisfy the Council heritage officer about as well as the recording it’s based on, which is to say not at all.

Section 1 — Title page and statement of purpose

• □Property address and lot/DP reference.
• □Heritage listing details — LEP item number, SHR listing number, or HCA designation.
• □Reason for the recording (the consent condition reference and the development consent number).
• □Author, date of recording and date of report.

Section 2 — Brief history of the place

• □Construction date, original architect or builder where known.
• □Sequence of major alterations — additions, demolitions, changes of use.
• □Sources cited — council building records, historic aerial photography, Sands directories, State Library holdings.

Section 3 — Statement of cultural significance

• □Significance assessed against the seven NSW Heritage Assessment Criteria (a–g).
• □Reference to the existing LEP, SHR or HCA statement of significance.
• □Identification of the elements of fabric and setting that contribute to that significance — this is what drives the photographic schedule that follows.

Section 4 — Photographic image catalogue

• □Contextual views — setting, streetscape, neighbouring properties.
• □Building exterior — all elevations, oblique views from each corner, roof from any accessible vantage.
• □Building interior — every room, structural elements, ceilings, floors, joinery, fireplaces, original fixtures.
• □Detail views — finishes, decorative elements, hardware, evidence of alteration.
• □Photographic schedule — numbered list with brief description for each image, including direction of view.
• □Floor plan(s) marked with camera locations and direction of view for every photograph.

Section 5 — Written description

• □Construction — structural system, material palette, roof construction, original openings.
• □Materials and finishes — including evidence of original versus later finishes.
• □Condition — significant defects, evidence of damp or structural movement.
• □Evidence of alteration — where additions, removals or modifications can be read in the fabric.

Section 6 — Measured drawings (where required)

• □Floor plans of each level, dimensioned, with room labels.
• □Elevations of each external face.
• □Sections through significant interior spaces.
• □Detail drawings of significant elements — joinery profiles, decorative ceilings, balustrades — for comprehensive recordings only.

Section 7 — Bound report and digital deliverable

• □Bound printed report (number of copies depends on the consent condition — commonly two).
• □Digital deliverable on archival-grade media (USB or DVD), including original-resolution images and the report PDF.
• □Lodgement to the body specified in the consent — Council’s heritage archive, the State Library of NSW, or both.
• □Receipt or written confirmation of lodgement, retained on the project file for the certifier.

Background and Related Reading

For background on the guideline this checklist is built against, see our article on the 2023 NSW heritage guidelines. For a step-by-step on what to do when you receive a PAR condition on a development consent, see our article on PAR as a condition of consent. For the service itself, see our Photographic Archival Recording page.