Ancient Kildare site may get funding

A HISTORIC Kildare site is eligible for a pilot World Heritage Strategic Investment Fund with a total value of €300,000.

Dún Ailinne near Kilcullen is on a select list of sites national for funding which can be used for conservation, maintenance, protection and promotion of archaeological and built heritage within World Heritage properties and Tentative Sites List in Ireland.

Dún Ailinne is the largest pre-Norman earthen enclosure in Ireland, covering some 44 acres and is on the Tentative Sites List for World Heritage status along with Hill of Uisneach, Westmeath in the Rock of Cashel in Tipperary.

The funding is available through local authorities and the scheme will be managed by the National Monuments Service at the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.

The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, James Browne, TD, remarked: “This scheme will help roll out our upcoming World Heritage Strategy, which is all about better protecting and managing our World Heritage sites, getting local communities more involved, and helping more people understand the value of World Heritage. Importantly for myself and Minister Christopher O’Sullivan, it’s a key step toward getting more Irish sites onto the World Heritage List."