Historic Buildings

St Augustine's Church of Ireland - Sexton’s Cottage – Keystone for Preservation, Accessibility and Sustainability

The applicant is St Augustine's Church of Ireland. The proposal relates to the preservation & renovation of the historic Sexton’s Cottage (listing reference HB01/19/012B). The cottage is a four-bay storey-and-a-half rendered vernacular dwelling, built c.1834 and situated on the edge of the historically sacred site of St. Augustine's, recognised as the former site of St. Columba's original monastery. The Sexton’s Cottage has fallen into a state of disrepair and is no longer used as a church asset. There is a critical risk of loss of this important heritage. The renovated Sexton’s Cottage will be remodelled as a high quality heritage & tourism accommodation venue attracting visitors from throughout the world to this historic area. This initiative will be the keystone to the long-term sustainability of St Augustine's Church historic site through generating recurrent income to support activities & accessibility and facilitating continuous reinvestment in the fabric of the wider venue.