Treasure Ireland: specialist support for Northern Ireland places of worship
Northern Ireland has an amazingly rich heritage of church and chapel buildings. This includes 939 listed places of worship, with 45 churches and chapels listed as Category A – building of the highest heritage significance. Treasure Ireland has been set up to help protect Northern Ireland’s historic places of worship.
Treasure Ireland was set up as an initiative between the National Churches Trust, The National Lottery Heritage Fund, Pilgrim Trust and the Historic Environment Division at the Department for Communities and will run until 2026.
Through a dedicated support officer based in Northern Ireland, churches are given advice and training on grants and maintenance, so they can keep their places of worship in good repair. There is also support given to help churches open their buildings to visitors and tourists, so that even more people can enjoy the stunning heritage that these churches have to offer.
A big thank you to The National Lottery Heritage Fund, Pilgrim Trust and the Historic Environment Division at the Department for Communities who have helped to make Treasure Ireland possible.
Treasure Ireland's impact from 2020-2023
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35 places of worship
have received a Treasure Ireland grant to fund urgent repairs and maintenance
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Over 100 churches
have been reached with training, support and advice
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2022 Church of the Year winner
St Macartan (The Forth Chapel) outside Augher, County Tyrone, took home the top prize at the National Church Awards in 2022.
More about Treasure Ireland
The Treasure Ireland grants fund offers between £500 and £10,000 for repairs and maintenance to help keep churches in good condition and to prevent expensive repairs.
How Treasure Ireland can help your place of worship
Through a dedicated support officer based in Northern Ireland, Treasure Ireland is able to provide a range of training, resources and mentoring to help you look after your place of worship.
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