The Heritage Council is now accepting applications for the Community Heritage Grant Scheme 2025, which provides financial aid to projects that improve access and inclusion to heritage sites and practices in Ireland.

The scheme is open to voluntary and community groups, like parish councils, tidy town and local action groups, non-governmental organisations and Museum Standards Programme for Ireland participants, with grants available ranging from €500 to €25,000.

According to the Heritage Council, the scheme is intended to enable these bodies to preserve places, collections, habitats and species, objects, buildings, monuments of local historic significance, as well as intangible heritage practices too.

The Heritage Council is particularly interested in applications that focus on improved access to, and therefore participation in, heritage activities by people with disabilities and in projects that address the heritage of minority groups and new communities.

A broad range of project types are eligible for funding under the scheme, including:

Conservation works to collections, objects or places,
Surveys, reports, plans, and audits to inform the future management of buildings and monuments, habitats, collections, or objects;
Alterations to buildings and places of architectural heritage significance to improve accessibility for people with disabilities;
Projects that help people engage more with their heritage, including interactive maps, virtual exhibitions, podcasts, websites etc;
Purchase of specialised equipment or items that support conservation or improve access to heritage;
Projects that promote the heritage of minority groups;
Workshops and training events that focus on skills development e.g., training on topics such as traditional building skills, graveyard recording, oral history recording and biodiversity conservation, such as pollinator-friendly planting and managing habitats for species of conservation concern.

A total of €1,840,613, was awarded to a number of heritage projects under the 2024 scheme, which varies from dry stone walling workshops in Wicklow to the Achill Oral History Project in Mayo.

The council stated that it expects to award 150 groups or organisations funding under this year's scheme.

According to the council, the scheme is not open to private companies, individuals, public bodies or organisations controlled either directly or indirectly by any state body.

Eligibility will be judged under the following assessment criteria:

Good practice - the project must be guided by comprehensive research and undertaken by reliable management;
Public and community benefit - the extent to which the project enhances community engagement and inclusion with local heritage;
Budget - the application must include a financial plan and be categorised as a 'good investment';
Project structure and permissions - the project's rationale and methodology must be well thought out with the relevant permissions granted.

Applications must be made via the Heritage Council's online grants management system before Friday, March 14, 2025 at 11:30p.m, and successful projects must be completed by November 14, 2025.