Laois County Council provide information and advice about the conservation and protection of historic structures.
In 2007 the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government published the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage which identified buildings throughout the County and rated their importance in terms of Local, Regional, National and International Importance. The buildings included within the NIAH have informed the preparation of the Protected Structures.
Each planning authority is obliged to have a Register of Protected Structures (RPS) which includes structures of special interest in its functional area. A protected structure is a structure that a planning authority considers to be of special interest from an architectural, historical, archaeological, artistic, cultural, scientific, social, or technical point of view.
The RPS forms part of the County Development Plan. In order to assist property owners in the restoration of protected structures the Council will seek to provide grant aid through its administration of the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government’s Grants Scheme.
The Scheme will be advertised on an annual basis and applications will be prioritised on the basis of the Council’s adopted ‘Scheme of Priorities’.
For further information on the National Inventory of Architecture of Ireland visit the Buildings of Ireland website