Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

86. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government for an update on the heritage grants available to community groups for local historic structures in their area; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24221/24]

Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The National Monuments Service of my Department administers the Community Monuments Fund (CMF). The core aims of the CMF are to:

• enable conservation works to be carried out on monuments which are deemed to be significant and in need of urgent support;
• build resilience in our monuments to enable them to withstand the effects of climate change;
• encourage access to monuments and improve their presentation.

The National Built Heritage Service (NBHS) also provides direct financial assistance for the protection of eligible heritage buildings and historic structures through two grant schemes which are, in the main, administered by the local authorities. These are the Historic Structures Fund (HSF) and the Built Heritage Investment Scheme (BHIS). The HSF is for conservation of heritage structures and historic buildings, in both private and public ownership, for the benefit of communities and the public. The BHIS is a scheme for the repair and conservation of structures on the local authority Record of Protected Structures (RPS). This year these schemes have a budget of €4.5 million each. I will shortly announce a new stream of funding within the HSF to provide expert conservation advice to support the repair and re-use of vacant traditional homes.

The NBHS also oversees the governance and funding for the Heritage Council, which this year has awarded a range of funding to the built heritage sector, including €1.2m to town regeneration projects and plans through the Historic Towns Initiative, as well as €1.8m for various projects in the 2024 Community Heritage Grant scheme.