Three Westmeath buildings are to benefit from funding under the Government’s Structures at Risk fund in 2016.
Corpus Christi Church in Mount Temple and Cooke Mausoleum in Delvin have been allocated €20,000 each, while Tullynally Castle, Castlepollard is to receive €9,000 in funding under the scheme, which provides funding for protected buildings in private and public ownership.
A sum of €20,000 has also been allocated to the Presbyterian Church in neighbouring Ballinasloe.
The funding was announced by Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Heather Humphreys, last Thursday. A total of €904,530 has been allocated to 57 heritage projects under the Structures at Risk Fund (SRF ) for 2016. The scheme provides funding for protected buildings in private and public ownership. The funding being provided ranges per project from €4,000 to over €26,000.
“This scheme was first introduced in 2011, and since then it has made an invaluable contribution to the preservation and protection of our built heritage. Support for our built heritage is vital not only for the safekeeping of Ireland’s architectural heritage, it also helps to support employment in the conservation and construction industries. Investing in our heritage will also play a very important role in rural regeneration, which of course will be a priority area in my new expanded portfolio,” said Minister Humphreys.
The Structures at Risk Fund provides funding for works to safeguard structures, in private and public ownership, protected under the Planning and Development Act 2000, and in certain cases, works to structures within Architectural Conservation Areas.
Typical works to be funded under the scheme include roof repairs, structural consolidation and measures to ensure weather tightness.