Architect of the buildings of France

Recruitment

The architects and town planners pupils are recruited: 1° By the way of an external contest with options, among the forty years old candidates to more at January 1st of the year of the contest, holders of a diploma, titrates, certificate or qualification which opens the access under architect in France; 2° By the way of an internal competition with options, among the civils servant and public agents of the State and the territorial collectivities cash at January 1st of the year of the contest at least five years of public services.

They are established by ministerial nomination. On average four to eight architects of the buildings of France are recruited per annum. Even if the contest is opened with all the architects DPLG, it is highly advised with the candidates to be last by the École of Chaillot.

Following the contest, a one year training is given to the Architectes pupils and to town planners of the State by the National school of the Highways Departments and by the School of Chaillot, which, sanctioned by a PFE, will be worth establishment.

Tests of the contest

written tests of admissibility

general essay on a subject of topicality (4 H)
analyzes critical of a project of architecture or installation with counter-proposal (4 H)
test with graphic proposal (8 H)
graphic test of architecture and town planning (10 H)

oral tests of admission

apprehension of a file of architecture, town planning or installation (40 min)
discussion with the jury (40 min)
foreign language (30min)

History

1946 : creation of the body of the Architects of the buildings of France, remote heirs to the superintendents of the Building industries of the King create par.
1984: relative order with the statute of the Architects of the buildings of France; fix the conditions of exercise of the profession still in force.
1986: within the ministry for the Equipment, creation of the Management of architecture and town planning (DAU).
1993: bringing together of the body of the Architects of the buildings of France and the town planners of the State within the body of the Architects and town planners of the State. Total recasting their statutes fully integrating them within the administration.
1995: fastening of the body of the Architects of the buildings of France to the ministry for the Culture, creation thus of an interdepartmental body (since part of the AUE exert on behalf of the ministry charged with the equipment).
2004: decree of June 2nd fixing the new statute of the body of the AUE.

Flow chart and fastening

The Architects of the buildings of France depend on the ministry for the Culture. The body of the Architects and town planners of the State, comprises two ranks, Architecte and town planner of the State and Architecte and town planner of the State as a chief. The body of the ABF includes/understands only one rank comprising nine levels. The ABF exerts in a Departmental service of architecture and inheritance (SDAP), its hierarchical person in charge being the prefect. The function is departmental and there exists at least an architect of the buildings of France by department, installed with the chief town of department. The ABF can be present at other levels of the ministry for the Culture: Central administration with the Direction of architecture and the inheritance (DAPA), regional, etc They can also be detached in other ministries (Environment in particular).

There are a SDAP by department, directed by a department head, assisted of one or two ABF assistant and approximately one to five agents (on average). The most frequent case is that the department head is a ABF but it happens sometimes that he is a civil Administrateur.

Missions

The management of protected spaces

the accesses of the historic buildings : the control of work of the classified buildings (law of December 31st, 1913, today Code of the inheritance, delivers VI) is entrusted to the Architect as a chief of the historic buildings for the maintenance work running, if not it is role of the Architecte as a chief of the historic buildings (ACMH) qualified territorialement for large work; the ABF is consulted for any project located in the perimeter of protection of 500 meters ray (founded by the law of 1943) around a historic building;

the protected sites : as an actor of the quality of the landscape, the ABF takes care on spaces registered or classified under the sites (Loi of May 2nd, 1930; parks and gardens, natural spaces, soils marked by the man…) ; the sites are managed by the Department of the Environment which missionne the ABF on the ground;

the safeguarded sectors : the ABF takes care of the coherence of the provisions registered with the protection plan (Loi Malraux of 1962 aiming at preventing the destruction of the old centers) during its development, then with their respect during interior and external work in the sector; in the protection zones of the architectural, urban and landscape heritage (ZPPAUP), the ABF coordinates the study then checks the conformity of the projects with its provisions; it is a work of control of the urbanization.

Within the framework of the control of these protected spaces, the ABF gives an opinion on all types of projects (Permis to build, to demolish, declaration of work, license to parcel out, certificate of town planning…). According to protected space and the request, the authority (mayor or prefect) which delivers the authorization is bound by the opinion of the ABF (assent), or can engage its own responsibility (simple opinion) (see in particular on the various opinions art SDAP).

The opinion of the ABF is likely of recourse before the regional commission of the inheritance and the sites (CRPS) chaired by the Regional prefect.

The maintenance of the listed monuments

the ABF takes care of the conservation of the protected buildings, while determining and while directing the operations of maintenance and ordinary repairs on the classified buildings when this work is financed by the ministry for the culture and the communication. The maintenance work followed within SDAP is of two orders: servicing on the one hand, heavier curative operations on the other hand, financed by multiannual appropriations, which can require the intervention complementary to geometricians and research departments.

This mission of maintenance entrusted to the ABF leaves room to the intervention of the Architecte as a chief of the historic buildings (ACMH) since the state of the monument requires an analysis deepened in preparation for a restoration campaign. The delimitation between the specific interventions and the restorations requires a systematic dialog assured by the regional conservative the historic buildings (CRMH).

Conservative of the monuments of State

the ABF is also the conservative of the monuments belonging to the State and assigned to the Direction of architecture and the inheritance of the ministry for the Culture and the Communication. This one, which with the responsibility for 400 monuments (on: 13000} classified historic buildings, of which 700 belong to the State), is the first owner of historic buildings in France. According to the departments, the ABF is thus preserving of at least one (generally the cathedral of its department) if not several monuments.

To preserve means to ensure the maintenance, i.e. to manage maintenance and current safety. Very many monuments open to the public entrusted to the Center of the national monuments, profit moreover from an administrator in load of their management and their animation. The missions of maintenance then are thus distributed: to the administrator is allocated the preventive maintenance, with conservative (the ABF) the restorative maintenance. It obviously belongs to the administrator to alert the ABF-conservative on work which appears necessary to him to the safety and the good conservation of the monument.

Sensitizing and pedagogy

the architects of the buildings of France also have the role sensitizing and the Pédagogie in direction of the elected officials and the public, and the maintenance of know-how, the techniques and materials traditional.
Installation of files of subsidies for the historic buildings, the classification or the inscription on the additional list of the historic buildings, or of subsidies within the framework of policy of improvement of the habitat (ANAH for example).
the ABF is also represented officially at the time of various commissions like the development of a ZAC, jury of contest, creation and of revision of RAINED…
It can also be an adviser near elected officials, of private individuals or project superintendents, in collaboration or not with the Conseil of architecture, town planning and environment (CAUE).

Development of career & remuneration

the development of career can seem with the first limited access: initially architect and town planner of State (AUE), assistant of the department head then architect and town planner of the State as a Chief (AUEC), chief of the service of the architecture and the inheritance of a department (SDAP)

But the outlets, in particular since the recasting of the statute in 1993, within the administration are definitely more important and offer very varied choices. Of share their interministeriality and their rank of catégarie A+ (equivalent with that of civil Administrator), they can exert their functions as well with the ministry for the Culture as to MEDAD. We thus currently find the AUE within the central administration or decentralized at the stations of General secretary of a decentralized service, of Chief of rural or urban district, of assistant of under director in central administration, of general secretary of a DRDE, preserving regional of the Historic buildings (CRMH), assistant editor of a service decentralized, regional director of the cultural Affairs, director of CIFP, responsible for inspection to the General advice with the Highways Departments, department head of the Habitat, department head of town planning, departmental director of DDE, regional director of DRE,…), and of decentralized department head, Department of the Environment (in particular with DIREN), of director of 3Ecole Nationale Sup3erieure of architecture… Moreover, a certain number of ABF joined after contest, the body of the Architecte as a chief of the historic buildings (the ABF are present at approximately 40% there).

the rough indicial wage grid of a ABF goes from 395 as a pupil on the scale letter HEB at the seventh level of the rank of architect and town planner of the State as a chief.

The wages of a ABF start as a pupil town-planner of the State with 2000 € Net and finish as an architect and a town planner of the State as a chief, department head, with 6500 € premiums included/understood. It should be noted that years of seniority of exercise as a liberal can be taken into account (within the four years limit). These wages can be higher if he exerts more important functions in particular in central administration.

Legislative texts or lawful which determine the framework of it

For the inheritance

Historic buildings: law of December 31st, 1913, several times supplemented, in particular by the law of February 23rd, 1943 on the accesses today delivers VI of the Code of the inheritance;
article 40 of the law of December 13rd, 2000, known as SRU, allowing the modification of the perimeters of protection around the historic buildings;
sites and monuments: Law of May 2nd, 1930, articles L 341-1 with L 342-2 of the Code of the environment, decrees of the June 13rd, 1969 and December 15th, 1988;
safeguarded sectors: law of August 4th, 1962, known as Malraux; articles L 313.1 and R 313.1 and following of the Code of town planning;
publicity, signs and pre-signs: law of December 29th, 1979, supplemented by article 8 of the decree of February 24th, 1982; articles L 581-1 with L 581-45 of the Code of the environment;
Protection zone of the architectural, urban and landscape heritage: law of January 7th, 1983 instituting the ZPPAU, extended by the law of January 8th, 1993 to the landscape stakes (ZPPAUP);
regional Commissions of the inheritance and the sites: law of February 28th, 1997.

For architecture

The article first of the law of January 3rd, 1977 issues the architecture of public interest: associations

associations

The ANABF is the associatoin architects of the buildings of France.

The AAUE is that of the architects and town planners of the State.

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