Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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610. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the financial supports available to help conserve and protect a historic structure (details supplied) in County Donegal; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27667/18]

Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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Financial support for the protection of heritage buildings and historic structures is provided by my Department through a number of schemes which are generally administered by local authorities.

The Built Heritage Investment Scheme is a scheme for the repair and conservation of protected structures (i.e. structures on the local authority Record of Protected Structures). It is designed to leverage private capital for investment in small scale conservation projects across the country and to support the employment of skilled conservation professionals. I have allocated funding of €2 million in total for this Scheme in 2018.

The Structures at Risk Fund enables conservation works to heritage structures in both private and public ownership, which are deemed to be at significant risk of deterioration.  I have allocated €1.324 million for the Structures at Risk Fund in 2018.

Details of the projects approved under both funding schemes are published on my Department’s website and local authority websites. 

The best advice for owners, in relation to individual historic structures, is generally to remain in contact with the Architectural Conservation Officer in their local authority, who is well placed to provide advice and assistance in relation to the grant schemes.

I understand that informal contact has been made with my Department in relation to the structure mentioned by the Deputy, which was the subject of an application under the 2018 Structures at Risk Fund. Initial feedback on that application was provided and the applicants were advised by my officials to contact the Architectural Conservation Officer in the local authority for more detailed feedback and advice. This has also been provided.

The Heritage Council, which my Department funds, also provides grants for the protection and preservation of the built heritage.  It is primarily a matter for the Heritage Council to decide how its funding should be allocated across the range of research, education and conservation programmes it supports.  Grant schemes for 2018 are advertised by the Heritage Council on its website www.heritagecouncil.ie.