Kilkenny projects awarded just under €300,000 in funding

Green Party TD for Carlow-Kilkenny and Minister for Nature, Heritage and Electoral Reform Malcolm Noonan has announced that 677 heritage projects across Ireland will benefit from almost €10 million in grants this year under the Built Heritage Investment Scheme (BHIS) and the Historic Structures Fund (HSF).

In total, 19 projects in Kilkenny will share funding of just under €300,000, while 10 projects across Carlow will receive €297,000.

Announcing the grants today, Minister Noonan said: "The level of funding we commit to these schemes highlights the Government's ongoing commitment to protect and preserve the built heritage that our communities know and love, and to do this in line with the goals I set out in our national heritage plan, Heritage Ireland 2030."

"As someone who has long been an advocate for preserving the unique vernacular of our Irish town centres, I’m especially pleased to see a significant investment in both Kilkenny and Carlow in this year’s allocations - a 20% increase from last year. Through the BHIS and HSF we will keep magnificent buildings such as St Kieran’s College and the Carlow County Library in use, preserve the historic exteriors of our shopfronts and establishments like the Harp Bar and the Club House, and bring many other buildings back into use," he added.

"By providing thousands of hours of valuable work for local traditional craft and tradespeople, including specialist skills like thatching and stone work, this funding gives a direct boost to local economies too. To conserve our built heritage into the future, we need to ensure we maintain the skills needed to do it. We can keep these unique skills alive by providing work for today’s skilled tradesmen and women and ensuring they’re passing their knowledge on to future generations.," Mr Noonan concluded.