Clare County Council has opened applications for the 2027 Community Monuments Fund, giving owners, custodians and community groups time to prepare a conservation proposal. Its notice, published on 9 October 2026, sets a local submission deadline of Friday, 22 January 2027. The scheme concerns archaeological monuments; it is not a general grant for renovating an old house. [1]

The notice lists support of up to €130,000 for essential conservation works and up to €30,000 for each of the planning and access or interpretation streams. Those are maximum amounts for eligible projects, not an entitlement for every applicant. The fund’s handbook explains selection, documentation and qualifying conditions. [1][2]

The new pilot is for councils

The handbook describes a separate post-project monitoring pilot. A local authority can seek up to €10,000, including VAT, to have a suitably qualified professional inspect earlier CMF conservation work at up to ten monuments. Its initial focus is masonry ruins, including churches, castles and abbeys. It is not a new personal inspection voucher for anyone owning a historic property. [2]

That distinction makes the first conversation important. Ask the council’s heritage team which stream fits the site and whether the monument appears in the relevant official record. Confirm the ownership or custodianship position and what permissions, professional input and public benefit the proposal needs to demonstrate. [2]

Start with the project, then the form

Prepare a short note identifying the monument, the problem and the intended outcome. Keep photographs and location information separate from estimates about what repairs might cost. A qualified assessment can turn a general concern into a defined conservation proposal; enthusiasm alone cannot specify appropriate work on historic fabric.

The handbook excludes work begun before a grant award and requires appropriate conservation methods and statutory permissions. Do not start repairs on the assumption that an application will reimburse them. [2]

For a voluntary group, an early planning meeting can assign responsibility for the application, supporting documents and questions to the council. Use Clare’s January deadline for the local application, rather than confusing it with later departmental submission dates. This article summarises the announced scheme and does not determine a particular site’s eligibility.