Skip to main content
Department for Communities Department for Communities An Roinn Pobal Depairtment fur Commonities

Main navigation

  • Home
  • Topics
  • Publications
  • Consultations
  • Contact

Translation help

Translate this page

Select a language

  • Arabic — عربي
  • Chinese (Simplified) — 中文简体
  • Chinese (Traditional) — 中文繁體
  • Dutch — Nederlands
  • Filipino — Filipino
  • French — Français
  • German — Deutsch
  • Hungarian — Magyar
  • Irish — Gaeilge
  • Italian — Italiano
  • Latvian — Latviešu
  • Lithuanian — Lietuvių kalba
  • Polish — Polski
  • Portuguese — Português
  • Romanian — Română
  • Russian — Русский
  • Slovak — Slovenčina
  • Spanish — Español
  • Ukrainian — Українська
  • Historic Environment

    Monuments advice and guidance

    Topics:
    • Historic environment, 
    • Archaeology & Monuments

    Historic Environment Division can provide advice on how best to care and look after monuments including those located on farmland.

    Advice

    A key role of Historic Environment Division is to supply advice to owners on how best to look after their monuments. A number of booklets are available and can be obtained free of charge by contacting us. We are also happy to visit your monument and offer on-site advice.

    If you are the owner of a scheduled monument, Historic Environment Division can answer any queries you may have on how this affects you and your monument. The local Field Monument Warden will be able to visit and offer you advice on how best to manage your site, or advise on any works which might require Scheduled Monument Consent. Please contact us.

    Our guide to scheduled historic monuments provides further advice on scheduled monuments in Northern Ireland.

    Looking after monuments in farmland

    The vast majority of historic monuments in Northern Ireland are located in privately-owned farmland. Historic Environment Division works closely with the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) and landowners to provide information and ensure that these sites are preserved for future generations.

    Often just a little bit of basic care, such as restricting grazing or keeping scrub and trees under control, is all that is needed to keep a monument in good condition.

    Protecting Historic Monuments on Farmland offers good advice for farmers and other owners of monuments in rural settings. If you participate in a DAERA agri-environment scheme you should be eligible for a payment towards looking after your monument, and your local Countryside Management Branch should be able to advise you on this.

    Looking after masonry monuments

    Masonry monuments, such as the ruins of castles or churches, can have a whole range of problems. Ivy growth is one of the most common, and if left unchecked will eventually lead to the collapse of a ruin. Dealing with vegetation on historic masonry monuments gives detailed guidance on how best to tackle this problem. Once vegetation has been cleared from a ruin it is often necessary to carry out some conservation works, which can be a complicated job.

    We would strongly recommend contacting us for detailed advice well before starting any work, including vegetation clearance. This is particularly important if the ruin is a scheduled monument, as written Scheduled Monument Consent may well be required.

    Detailed guidelines are available in the Conservation of Scheduled Masonry Monuments. A Management Agreement may be available to help with the costs of work to masonry monuments.

    View the Historic Environment Division structure and contacts

    Related content

    • A Guide to Metal Detecting, Archaeology and the Law
    • Advice for finders of treasure in Northern Ireland
    • Advice for Monument Owners
    • Archaeology
    • Areas of Significant Archaeological Interest
    • Buildings Database
    • Carrickfergus Castle - Works to the Great Tower Roof
    • Climate change risk assessment for historic building owners
    • Domestic chimneys and flues
    • Flooding advice for Listed Building owners
    • Glossary of conservation terms
    • Heritage and Climate Change
    • Heritage at Risk
    • Hiring a State Care Monument
    • Historic Buildings Council
    • Historic Buildings of Local Importance
    • Historic Buildings Surveys
    • Historic Environment Advice and Guidance in the Planning Process
    • Historic Environment Division (HED) policy statement regarding dogs on State Care Monuments
    • Historic Environment Division - Who we are and the difference we make
    • Historic Environment Division Policy on the Illumination of State Care Monuments
    • Historic Environment Projects
    • Historic Environment Toolkit
    • Historic Monuments
    • Historic Monuments Council
    • Historic places to visit
    • Historic Telephone Kiosks
    • Historic wrecks
    • Industrial Archaeology
    • Listed buildings
    • Listed Buildings - Repair and Maintenance
    • Listed Buildings and Fire
    • Maintenance Checklist: Bituminous Sheet Flat Roofs
    • Marine historic environment
    • Nominating a Building for Listing in Northern Ireland
    • Outdoor ground protection system for historic places
    • Photographing historic buildings - notes for surveyors
    • Protecting Northern Ireland's archaeology
    • Repair and Maintenance Guidance
    • Scheduled Historic Monuments
    • Sites and Monuments Record
    • Skills Development
    • State Care Monuments
    • The Curtilage of Listed Buildings in Northern Ireland
    • The Derry Walls
    • The Listing Process for historic buildings
    • Traditional or Vernacular buildings
    • Work to Churches
    Share this page Share on Facebook (external link opens in a new window / tab) Share on X (external link opens in a new window / tab) Share by email (external link opens in a new window / tab)

    Department footer links

    • Crown copyright
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy
    • Cookies
    • Accessibility
    • The Northern Ireland Executive
    • The Executive Office
    • Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs
    • Department for Communities
    • Department for Education
    • Department for the Economy
    • Department of Finance
    • Department for Infrastructure
    • Department for Health
    • Department of Justice
    • nidirect.gov.uk — the official government website for Northern Ireland citizens