Community groups in Clare are being encouraged to apply to join the Heritage Council’s Adopt a Monument scheme which is all about empowering local communities to become involved in the care and conservation of a much-loved local monument.
The Adopt a Monument scheme offers communities expertise, mentoring and support to help them to care for their local heritage.
The Kilkerrin Battery Fort in Labasheeda, Clare, (photo below) was ‘adopted’ by the Labasheeda Projects Group in 2019 to preserve the site for future generations. In the early 1800s, battery forts were built along the Shannon Estuary to repel a threatened invasion by Napoleonic forces.
Kilkerrin Battery Fort, near the village of Labasheeda, is a well-preserved example of this type of fort, its stout walls have withstood the elements for over two centuries. Built between 1811 and 1814, the battery remained in use throughout much of the nineteenth century. It eventually fell into disrepair until restoration work was undertaken in the 1980s by a local group.
With funding from the Heritage Council, the Labasheeda Projects Group commissioned ecological and architectural surveys and developed a walking trail to the site.
Since the scheme first began in 2016, 30 groups across Ireland have ‘adopted’ monuments in their locality ranging from ring forts to 19th century industrial buildings to medieval churches as well as a Gaelic castle.
All over Ireland there is an incredible variety of heritage sites, including ancient tombs, stone circles, early monasteries, castles, churches and graveyards, landed estates, mines, kilns, mills, traditional houses and battlefields. The Adopt a Monument Scheme takes a very broad view of heritage and is open to applications from enthusiastic community groups all over Ireland to apply to the scheme to adopt a site that is important to them.
The aim is that the chosen monument will serve as a focal point for heritage-related, educational and recreational activities and will encourage greater appreciation and understanding of local heritage.
Virginia Teehan, Chief Executive of the Heritage Council, at the Heritage Council, said: “The Adopt a Monument Scheme is a wonderful way of ensuring our monuments remain an integral part of a community. Maintaining them and caring for them requires much-needed expertise and resources which is exactly what the scheme provides. We can already see the positive effect the scheme has had on the areas where a monument was adopted, and the pride of place and increased civic value brought about the efforts of our dedicated community groups is very satisfying to see.”
The Heritage Council is now calling for interested groups to apply for the scheme. The closing date for applications 21st March 2025. Further information about the scheme and the application process can be found here: https://www.heritagecouncil.ie/projects/aam