Heritage

County Westmeath has a rich variety of archaeological, built, cultural and natural heritage.

This includes:

Monuments
Archaeological objects
Heritage objects
Architectural Heritage
Museums and Archives
Landscapes
Flora
Fauna
Wildlife Habitats
Geology
Inland Waterways
Heritage Gardens and Parks
Folklore
Music and Language

Heritage picture 1

Co. Westmeath's heritage is of importance and value as it provides a unique sense of place for the county. Heritage also provides a recreational, educational and amenity resource. Protecting our heritage is an integral part of sustainable development and also brings economic benefits to the county.

The Co. Westmeath Heritage Office provides a service for information on heritage projects, funding sources, heritage links, contacts and services of heritage specialists. The Heritage Office also serves to develop policies for promotion and best practice for management of the county's heritage resource.

Heritage Plan

A five-year heritage plan was prepared by the Westmeath County Heritage Forum which was adopted by Westmeath County Council in April 2003. The aim of the Co. Westmeath Heritage Plan is to set out a vision for the conservation and sustainable management of heritage for the future and to encourage community responsibility in its implementation. The plan recognises that a shared responsibility is required to effectively manage and promote our heritage. The process of preparing the plan involved a forum that represented a wide range of organisations and individuals. Extensive public consultation took place throughout the process so everyone had an opportunity to input to the County Heritage Plan.

This Plan is now being revised and updated and the process of Public Consultation has commenced. All interested individuals and organisations are invited to contact the Forum in writing or by email, on or before Friday 24th April 2009, identifying heritage issues and needs in Westmeath and suggesting ways of addressing them locally.

Correspondence should be addressed to: Westmeath Heritage Forum, County Buildings, Mullingar, Co Westmeath

or you can email your ideas and suggestions to: heritage@westmeathcoco.ie

The Westmeath County Heritage Plan 2008 -2014 will set out a 6 year action plan which will aim to conserve and manage our heritage and to encourage a sense of shared responsibility for heritage in the whole community. The actions will address eight broad themes.

These are:

To raise the profile of heritage in the whole community
To develop a heritage awareness and education programme
To make information on heritage more easily available to all
To integrate the protection and enhancement of heritage into the development process
To improve access to heritage for all
To protect and enhance natural heritage, landscape and waterways
To protect and enhance the built heritage
To develop interest and activity in local history and culture

Among the actions identified in the Heritage Plan 2003-2007 the following are some of those implemented:

A series of seminars were organised to raise awareness of heritage.
Talks and workshops for owners of protected structures were organised which addressed issues regarding conservation, maintenance costs and planning.
Heritage information signs were installed in towns/villages and other appropriate locations in Westmeath
A pilot Village Design Statement for Killucan, was prepared which was then used by Westmeath County Council as a model for other towns and villages namely Streete and Tyrrellspass
A panel, to include local heritage experts to assist Westmeath County Council to produce guidance for developers and the public in the naming of housing estates was established
From a objective of the Heritage Plan, Westmeath County Council brought forward byelaws to regulate the use of jet-skis and powerboats on the County’s lakes
From a objective of the Heritage Plan, Westmeath County Council undertook a landscape character assessment of the county which now forms part of the Westmeath County Development Plan 2008-2014
A Conservation Plan for the Town Walls of Athlone was prepared
Hedgerow Survey Report of the County undertaken in 2005
Information Leaflets on the Natural and Built Heritage of a number of villages in Westmeath including the villages of Fore and Lismacaffrey were produced.

Members of County Westmeath Heritage Forum 2009

Cllr. Michael Newman

Member, Westmeath Co Co.

Cllr. Mick O’Connell

Member, Athlone Town Council

Cllr. Ruth Illingworth

Member, Mullingar Town Council

Andrea Webb

National Parks and Wildlife Service

Geraldine Stout

National Monuments

Séamus Dunne

Forest Service,Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food

Brendan Connolly

Teagasc/Department of Agriculture and Food

Matt Nolan

Shannon & Eastern Regional Fisheries Board

Eamonn Horgan

Waterways Ireland

PJ Fitzpatrick

Coillte

Betty Doran

Royal Canal Amenity Group

Bernie Leavy

Westmeath Community Development

Marie McCormack

Fáilte Ireland

Watson Mills

Community and Voluntary Forum

Siobhán Bigley

(Athlone) Chamber of Commerce

Louis Peppard

(Mullingar) Chamber of Commerce

INTO, TUI, ASTI

Helen O’Gorman

Farming Representative

to be filled

Dr. Harman Murtagh

Athlone IT

Terry McCague

In attendance: Westmeath Co. Co. - Senior Planner

Bernadette Solon

In attendance: Westmeath Co. Co. - Conservation Architect

Document Downloads

Welcome to the Heritage webpage! Information is provided below on the Council’s latest heritage initiative – the development of a County Heritage Plan. Download the Draft Westmeath Heritage Plan 2010-2015 and read all about it.

Draft Westmeath Heritage Plan 2010-2015

This is the second Heritage Plan for County Westmeath, covering the period 2010 to 2015. It brings forward the aim of the last plan -’ to set out a vision for the conservation and sustainable management of heritage in Westmeath for the future, and, to encourage community responsibility in its implementation’. Similar to the last plan it aims to identify, conserve, raise awareness and promote enjoyment of all aspects of the built, natural and cultural heritage of the county. This new plan aspires to continue with and to build on the achievements of the previous plan and takes into consideration changes in national and local policies since the publication of the first plan.

Various important Government policy documents and enactments relating to Heritage have been published since the production of the last plan in 2003 - National Development Plan 2007- 2014, Transport 21 (2006-2105), Government Policy on Architecture 2009 - 2015, National Climate Change Strategy 2007- 2012, etc

The Westmeath Heritage Plan sets out a 5 year action plan which focuses on all aspects of our heritage. This includes archaeological sites and objects; architectural and built heritage; industrial heritage; natural heritage such as our landscapes, flora, fauna, wildlife and geology; inland waterways – our rivers, lakes and canals; heritage gardens and parks; heritage objects; history, folklore, music, language, and other aspects of cultural heritage. The County Heritage Plan encourages a sense of shared responsibility for heritage in the whole community

Progress of the 2010-2115 Plan:
The first-step in the process was the examination by the County Heritage Forum of the County Westmeath Heritage Plan 2003-2007 and an evaluation of the implementation of the aims and actions outlined in that plan. The Forum includes representatives of local government, national government and state agencies, heritage and community organisations in the County, local business and development, the farming sector, and education.
The Heritage Forum continued its work through 2008 and 2009 and initiated a wide-ranging consultation process, which took place from January to April 2009 and included public meetings in Castlepollard, Athlone, Kilbeggan and Mullingar. Strong support was expressed for the emerging Heritage Plan at these public meetings.

In addition a total of 39 submissions were received from individuals, community groups and organisations, local heritage groups and organisations, local government and state agencies, NGOs, churches, local development and business, heritage visitor attractions, and representative bodies. Hundreds of issues were raised in the submissions which covered the full spectrum of heritage issues and concerns. Many ideas and suggestions were also made for the way forward.

Over several months the Forum then formulated a Draft Heritage Plan taking into account the views expressed at the public meetings, and this was brought to the elected members of the County Council on 22nd February 2010. At this meeting the Draft Plan was warmly welcomed and the elected members agreed to invite observations and submissions on the Draft Plan for a period of 1 month, after which they will consider the submissions before adopting the Heritage Plan. They expressed the hope that many interested individuals and organisations would make submissions.

The Draft Heritage Plan is also available for inspection at the following locations
(Monday – Friday 9.00 a.m. – 4.00 p.m.)

• County Buildings, Mullingar
• Athlone Civic Centre
• Kilbeggan Civic Centre
• Coole Area Office
• Athlone, Castlepollard, Kilbeggan, Moate and Mullingar Branch Libraries.

You are invited to submit your observations and submissions in relation to the Draft Heritage Plan in writing between Wednesday 10th March 2010 and Friday 9th April 2010 (both dates inclusive) to:

The Heritage Office,
Forward Planning,
Westmeath County Council
County Buildings
Mullingar

or alternatively by email to: heritage@westmeathcoco.ie