Donegal County Council’s Architectural Conservation Unit is responsible for making additions to the Record of Protected Structures (RPS). The unit also aids the owners or guardians of structures on the RPS, the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage (NIAH) or within Architectural Conservation Areas (ACAs) with conservation advice and direction.
You can check if your property is on the RPS or in an ACA using the Planning Map Search at www.donegalcoco.ie
You can check if your property is on the NIAH at https://www.buildingsofireland.ie/buildings-search/
Please provide your RPS, ACA or NIAH reference number in all correspondence to enable us to deal with your query.
You can contact the Architectural Conservation Unit at [email protected]
The following grants are now open. The date of closure is 4 pm Friday January 19th 2024. No late submissions will be accepted:
Please click on the links below to access all forms required.
Built Heritage Investment Scheme and the Historic Structures Fund 2024
On November 2nd 2023 Malcolm Noonan TD, Minister of State for Heritage and Electoral Reform at the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage launched the Built Heritage Investment Scheme and the Historic Structures Fund for 2024.
The Built Heritage Investment Scheme and the Historic Structures Fund support the owners and custodians of protected structures and those in Architectural Conservation Areas to meet their obligations to care for their properties.
Following on from the successful pilot streams for vernacular structures and historic shopfronts in 2023, both streams will continue under Historic Structures Fund (HSF) 2024. The Built Heritage Investment Scheme (BHIS) maintenance stream has also been retained this year. It should be noted that the 2024 Built Heritage Investment Scheme will include ring-fenced funding of €500,000, at a national level, for conservation repairs to thatched structures to maximise the availability of financial assistance to such owners, helping them offset other costs.
Owners are invited to make an application through the Architectural Conservation Unit, Donegal County Council by 4pm Friday 19th January 2024, which must in turn be submitted to the Department by 2nd February 2024. Partnership projects by state-funded organisations should submit applications directly to the Department. Details of the schemes and how to apply are available on the links above.
The Thatch Repair Grant Scheme 2023 is now open for applications:
Owners or occupiers of a Protected Structuremay request a ‘declaration’ under Section 57 of the Act. The purpose of this declaration is for Planning Authorities to clarify in writing the kind of works that would or would not materially affect the character of the structure or any element of the structure which contributes to its special interest. The issuing of a declaration is a service that the Planning Authority provides at no cost to the owner or occupant of a protected structure. The Planning Authority has twelve weeks from the receipt of a request for a Section 57 to have it completed.
