A total of €44,800 has been made available to carry out repairs on a number of historic farm houses and structures around Ireland under a new fund from the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.
The €4.5 million Historic Structures Fund (HSF), which was announced by Minister of State at the department Malcolm Noonan today (March 28), will support 95 heritage projects including three farm complexes.
€10,000 has been made available for renovation and repairs to the vernacular farmhouse at Fennor House in Oldcastle Co. Meath.
Vernacular structures, which are widespread in Ireland, refer to those that were constructed by local people who had no formal trade or experience in building.
According to an outline by the department, the grant will cover the cost of stone repairs including stills, lintels and stacks.
It will also cover the repointing and replacement of the roof structure, the rain gutters, timber sash windows and the timber plank door.
An original farm dwelling in Peahill, Ballylooby, Cahir in Co. Tipperary will also receive a grant worth €10,000.
This funding will be used to carry out conservation repair works to reinstate the historically appropriate windows as well as refurbish the surviving windows from the original building.
Concrete walls which were built in front of the original west gable will also be removed and a French drain around the perimeter of the building will be completed with the money.
Meanwhile, €6,800 has been allocated to O’Hara’s farmhouse in Ballymacurly, south Co. Roscommon.
This funding will be used to refurbish the roof of the house, the rainwater infrastructure and to address lead issues on the complex.
Also in Roscommon, the Rockingham Stable yard will receive €18,000 to refurbish and repair 10 sash windows from the 1830s, and to replace a number of timber casement windows from the 1970s.
In addition, to support the owners and custodians of these protected structures, it’s also estimated that the funding will provide a boost to local economies by generating an estimated 11,250 days of labour.
This includes employment for those in specialist roles such as thatching professionals and stonemasons.
“I am delighted to announced [this] €4.5 million investment,” said Minister Noonan.
“Through this, the government continues to celebrate the value and diversity of our build heritage, while also supporting traditional building skills.
“These actions also continue to help us deliver on our commitments to built heritage under ‘Heritage Ireland 2030’, the national plan which launched last year,” he concluded.