Minister Noonan announces 2022 Community Monuments Fund grants of €747,410 for Dublin local monuments and historic sites

Minister of State Malcolm Noonan yesterday announced the award of grants for a wide range of archaeological heritage projects under the Department’s 2022 Community Monuments Fund. 

Building on the impact of the scheme last year under which 139 awards were granted to an amount of just under €4.2 million, this year 128 projects are being supported with an overall investment of €6 million.

Dublin projects awarded funding under the Community Monuments Fund can be found in the table below.

Site/Monument/Project Award

Carrickbrennan Graveyard, Monkstown €30,000.00

Pucks Castle, Ballychorus Road, Shankill €85,000.00

St. Audeon’s Medieval Church, Dublin     €85,000.00

St. Canice’s Graveyard, Finglas   €85,000.00

Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin €30,000.00

Drimnagh Castle, Drimnagh         €30,000.00

St. James’s Church & Graveyard, James’s Street, Dublin  €10,762.50

Rush Tower House, Rush              €85,000.00

St. Catherine’s Kenure Church, Rush        €85,000.00

St. Marnock’s Church, Portmarnock         €85,000.00

St. Columbas Church & round tower, Swords       €85,000.00

Moat Wood, south-west of Naul                30,000.00

Balrothery Tower House               €21,648.00

The core objective of the Community Monuments Fund is to support the conservation, maintenance, protection and promotion of local monuments and historic sites.

It contains a number of different measures aimed at enabling conservation works to be carried out on archaeological monuments which are deemed to be significant and in need of urgent support, encouraging access to archaeological monuments and improving their presentation and also building resilience in archaeological monuments to enable them to withstand the effects of climate change.

Under three Streams the Community Monuments Fund supports a broad range of measures aimed at protecting and promoting archaeological monuments, including emergency conservation repair works at monuments, masonry repair, the development of Conservation Management Plans, access infrastructure and installation of interpretation signage, and social media projects aimed at disseminating knowledge of Ireland’s archaeological heritage.

Speaking yesterday, Minister Noonan said:

“I am delighted to announce the Community Monuments Fund awards for 2022.

“The increased funding we are announcing today of €6 million to 128 projects will help protect our wonderful archaeological heritage and make it more accessible to the many who cherish it.

“These awards help us to deliver on various commitments under Heritage Ireland 2030, the new national heritage plan launched earlier this year. It will provide further supports for communities and custodians and the heritage sector, for archaeologists, conservation architects, stone masons, and other professional trades.

These projects will also help build resilience against extreme weather and mitigate the impacts of climate change, a priority action embedded in our Climate Adaptation Plan.

“I want to commend our National Monuments Service for their huge effort in managing the scheme and the Local Authorities for their incredible support in administering applications.

“I am particularly happy that we are helping to meet the ambition of local communities across Ireland in protecting their archaeological heritage. “

Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien, TD, said:

“Our archaeological monuments provide a sense of place to rural communities, villages, towns and cities across the country.

“With my colleague, Minister of State Malcolm Noonan, TD, we have grown this Fund yet again from last year to have a real impact on communities and the monuments.

“The wide range of projects which have been included are testament to the rich history which surrounds us all.”

A full list of the projects being funded can be found on the Department’s website here