I am very much aware of the issues that are currently facing thatched houses.
There are various schemes within my Department that provide financial support to owners of thatched structures. A dedicated Thatching Grant is available for thatched buildings in use as housing. Applicants can avail of up to €3,810 or two thirds of the approved cost (whichever is less) towards necessary roof repair or renewal. A higher grant (up to €5,714) may be payable for houses on specified islands. For owners of qualifying thatch properties who are also Medical Card holders the maximum grant available is €6,350, or up to 80% of the approved cost (€8,252 for Islands).
Further support is available for historic thatched buildings through the National Built Heritage Service (NBHS), principally under the Built Heritage Investment Scheme (BHIS). This scheme is administered by the local authorities and funded by my Department. Since 2023, it has included a dedicated funding stream for historic thatched buildings which offers grants of up to €20,000 for thatching or other conservation work. Owners of historic thatched buildings may also apply for funding from the main stream of the BHIS.
Funding of €500,000 is available each year for the Thatching Grant. Under the schemes operated by the NBHS, which allocate funding at the beginning of each year, €1,250,000 has been awarded to thatched buildings in 2025. Altogether, €1.75m has been made available this year to support works in thatched buildings. This means that, on a per building basis, thatched buildings receive more than three times as much grant funding as protected structures which do not have a thatched roof.
In determining the appropriate level of support, a very important consideration is that the number of skilled thatchers is limited. Last year many owners did not draw down the grants awarded because they were unable to secure the services of a thatcher. Given this constraint, there is a substantial risk that the main effect of further increasing the grant funding available would simply be to drive up the price of thatching work.
I am pleased to say that important steps have been taken to increase the supply of skilled thatchers. Short courses are now available from the Donegal Thatching School in Portnoo, and in January of this year 14 students began a new 42-week thatching training course offered by Kilkenny-Carlow Education and Training Board in conjunction with the Heritage Council. These courses, together with the informal training offered by experienced thatchers, will greatly enhance capacity to make full use of the funding supports available.
I am also aware that securing affordable home insurance has proven difficult for owners of thatched buildings in recent years. My Department has carried out research which indicates that this is due to a period of high incidence of fire in thatched buildings, in part due to increased use of wood-burning stoves. To address this issue, my Department has published new fire safety guidelines for thatched property owners and created an advice service to offer further guidance on risk mitigation.
