Kildare homeowners can avail of grants for thatched roofs

Kildare homeowners can avail of grants of up to €20,000 for thatched roofs.

Grants of up to €50,000 are also available for the conservation and protection of historic buildings.

Funding will provide help to owners in fulfilling the obligations imposed on them by the Planning and Development Acts.

Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, James Browne TD and Minister of State for Nature, Heritage and Biodiversity, Christopher O’Sullivan have today announced the opening of applications for the Built Heritage Investment Scheme (BHIS) 2026, including a dedicated funding stream for historic thatched buildings. BHIS supports owners and custodians of historic buildings to maintain and conserve the important structures which form an essential part of Ireland’s cultural landscape.

Every year the owners and occupiers of Ireland’s historic buildings help to preserve the architectural legacy of our towns and countryside by carrying out routine maintenance as well as more significant works to rescue, repair, or upgrade architectural features while contending with the higher costs and more complex requirements of maintaining older buildings.

Administered through the Local Authorities, the BHIS is designed to support these efforts by providing grants of between €2,500 and €50,000 for works to buildings which are protected under the Planning and Development Acts, and to vernacular buildings or historic shopfronts lacking in statutory protection but which remain essential to our architectural heritage. Owners of thatched buildings can also apply for dedicated funding for their heritage structures under the separate thatched buildings stream, though only one grant may be awarded per applicant.

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Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, James Browne TD, said:

“The Built Heritage Investment Scheme is a vital support to those people who have taken on the responsibility of protecting the architectural evidence of our past ways of life while also introducing new vitality into our historic buildings.

Whether through inheritance, family connection, the desire for a home, or out of a simple love for the history and character of older buildings, owners and occupiers of historically important structures make a daily contribution to the sense of tradition and character present in so many of our communities.

Schemes such as the BHIS therefore help to preserve the record of our shared past while securing the future viability of our historic buildings as homes, workplaces, and community spaces, and I strongly encourage anyone interested in availing of the grants to contact the Architectural Conservation Officer or Heritage Officer in their Local Authority as soon as possible.”

The BHIS is operated by Local Authorities with funding from the National Built Heritage Service (NBHS) of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. The BHIS is complemented by the Historic Structures Fund (HSF), a separate scheme focusing on grants of between €50,000 and €200,000 to assist larger-scale projects. Applications for the HSF will open towards the end of 2025.

Minister of State for Nature, Heritage and Biodiversity, Christopher O’Sullivan TD, said:

“I am delighted that my Department continues to offer these supports under the Built Heritage Investment Scheme, which also address modern concerns by enabling the utilisation of our traditional building stock to meet housing needs, revitalise communities, and keep historic properties in use for the families and communities of the future. I look forward to seeing the impacts of this funding in the coming months and years, as we continue to tackle our housing challenge with all the tools at our disposal.”

The closing date for applications to Local Authorities is September 26th 2025.

Successful projects will be announced in January 2026, with a full list to be published on gov.ie

Further details about the scheme and its eligibility requirements may be found at https://www.gov.ie/en/department-of-housing-local-government-and-heritage/services/built-heritage-investment-scheme-bhis/

Details about the dedicate stream for thatched buildings may be found at https://www.gov.ie/en/department-of-housing-local-government-and-heritage/services/historic-thatch-grant/

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