"To secure benefits for the heritage of County Sligo and to increase awareness, appreciation and enjoyment of it for all.’
The Heritage Office is committed to providing high quality advice on all matters relating to heritage issues and is responsible for developing policies and priorities for the identification, protection, preservation and enhancement of Sligo’s heritage. It also seeks to assist the development of the Local Authorities heritage strategy and policy, advising on heritage impacts and consequences. Central to the services provided by the Heritage Office, is the promotion of interest, education, knowledge and pride in the heritage of County Sligo, and in so doing, increasing awareness, appreciation and enjoyment of the County’s heritage for all.
The development of a co-ordinated heritage strategy at county level is a key recommendation of government policy as outlined in the National Heritage Plan (2002) and the National Biodiversity Plan (2002).
This is being achieved through:
The County Sligo Heritage Plan has heralded a new and exciting period for heritage conservation in Sligo, based on partnership and co-ordination amongst all those with an interest in and remit for heritage management in the county. The Heritage Plan which was launched in 2002 was one of the first of its kind in Ireland, it is a concerted effort to establish objectives and set priorities for our shared heritage. The emphasis is on shared responsibility for the protection and conservation of Sligo’s heritage resource. Copies of the County Sligo Heritage Plan 2002-2006 are available from the County Sligo Heritage Office or can be downloaded from the council’s website.
L.A. Physical Heritage Projects
– Achievements in 2004
Sligo Cemetery Gate Lodge conservation grant allocation of €40,000 secured from the Urban & Village Renewal Regional Operational Programme 2000-2006 to carry out conservation works during 2005.
Almost €250,000, allocated to Sligo Local Authorities by the Department of Environment Health and Local Government for conservation of protected structures in County Sligo since 1999.
There have been significant strides and progress in the area of built heritage over the past few years in the county. Sligo County Council in setting policies and objectives for the conservation and management of our built heritage resource is in the process of reviewing the Record of Protected Structures as part of the County Development Plan Review 2005-2011. At a national level we recognise that we are embarking on a new era of built heritage management, putting in place appropriate supports and advice for owners of protected structures and the stakeholders who are also involved such as architects, builders and the wider community among others. Increasingly we are finding the need to resource the more traditional building skills and knowledge base in the care and conservation of our shared built heritage.
Sligo County Council is aware of the increased responsibility and participation of owners of listed buildings in caring for the county’s built heritage resource and since 1999 has supported property owners in the care and conservation of their properties through the annual grant scheme for the conservation of protected structures. The funding for the scheme is allocated annually by the Department, and is administered, in the absence of a Conservation Officer, by the County Heritage Office on behalf of the Sligo Local Authorities.
The objective of the scheme is to assist the owner or occupier of a structure, which is protected under the Planning and Development Act 2000 ecause of its architectural, historical, archaeological, artistic, cultural, scientific, social or technical interest, to undertake conservation works. Works qualify under the scheme where they consist of the conservation of one or more elements of a qualifying structure. Some of these works may require planning permission. Qualifying works would, among other things, include:- works necessary to secure the stability of a structure or part of structure, works necessary to make a structure weather-proof or damp-proof, works necessary to conserve or repair external walls or internal features or works consisting of temporary repairs, where it is necessary to protect a structure from immediate risk.
The standard amount of grant is 50 per cent of the approved cost of works, up to a maximum of €13,000. A local authority may, at its discretion, vary this amount downwards or, in exceptional circumstances, upwards, subject to a maximum allowable grant of 75 per cent of the approved cost of works, or £25,000, whichever is the lesser. Any grant greater than £10,000 requires the prior approval of the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government.
Since the establishment of the scheme a number of properties have benefited with the ownership varying from individual property owners and community groups to Church bodies. Beneficiaries of the scheme have included, the Yeats Memorial Building, Sligo, Millview House, Riverstown, St. Crumnathys Cathedral, Achonry, Thatched cottage, Carrownacreevy, Beltra, Coopershill House, Riverstown, No. 6 The Mall, Sligo and Toberfechin House, Beltra.
The wider Sligo communities are the custodians of our built heritage and are the owners of many of our protected structures. In many cases the small thatched house, or typical farmhouse with associated out-buildings, are as important to our built heritage as the large medieval churches and classical country houses. In delivering the Conservation Grant Scheme, Sligo County Council seeks to support property owners in caring for the local built heritage resource and to promote best practice and the development of conservation skills within the county to meet the growing need.