The Gorham’s Cave Complex (Property ID 1500) was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2016. The State Party (the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland) reports to UNESCO on behalf of the site, which is managed by the Gibraltar National Museum (as World Heritage Office, WHO) on behalf of HM Government of Gibraltar. Meetings of the World Heritage Advisory Forum (WHAF), chaired by Minister Professor John Cortes, are held regularly. The Forum oversees the work of the WHO. 

The State Party reports on its sites to UNESCO as part of a periodic reporting cycle. Sites report in detail to the State Party, which assesses the reports and transmits them to UNESCO. The Gorham’s Cave Complex was involved in the first periodic reporting cycle since its inscription and feedback has now been received from UNESCO. ICOMOS (International Council on Monuments and Sites) acts as an official Advisory Body to UNESCO and in a Technical Note provided by this body it makes reference to the 2023-2028 Management Plan for the Gorham’s Cave Complex which replaces the first Management Plan. 

In the Technical Note, ICOMOS found that “the Management Plan requires no further development. In many regards, it is an exemplary Management Plan, not least demonstrating how a Management Plan can and should reflect an ongoing, proactive management system for a World Heritage property.” Among the key strengths of the Management Plan, ICOMOS highlighted the development of specific legal protection for the property (Gorham’s Cave Complex Regulations 2019) under the Heritage and Antiquities Act 2018, as well as a range of components that included a coherent and comprehensive management structure and a coherent and regular monitoring system. 

Minister with responsibility for the Gorham’s Cave Complex World Heritage Site, Professor John Cortes, expressed his delight at the site’s Management Plan being described as exemplary. He said: “I am proud that the production of the Management Plan was done totally in-house by our WHO. This reflects the high degree of local expertise in our museum team, which meant that we did not require the costly engagement of consultants from abroad. It is important to note that the entire management of the world heritage site is done in-house by the Gibraltar National Museum team as part of its museum duties. These duties were added when the site became a World Heritage Site. I want to yet again express my congratulations for this world class performance of which all Gibraltarians should be proud.” 

The World Heritage Site Management Plan is available at: https://www.gorhamscave.gi/uploads/Docs/Management%20Plan%202023-28%20ver.%201.0%20June%202023.pdf