Bushmills' Historic School Secures Funding for Restoration Project

The National Lottery Heritage Fund has announced £30 Million of Funding to Mark Three Decades of Making a Difference, including support for restoring the former National School in Bushmills.

Former National School Bushmills has successfully attracted a National Lottery Heritage Grant covering the project's Development phase. 

The grant covers capacity building to enhance the organisation's skills and knowledge in project management, heritage conservation, and community engagement; further building survey work, including opening up interpretation and activity planning; further stakeholder engagement (local community, heritage experts, and relevant authorities) for feedback and input to project plans and to ensure the project is a financially sustainable post-delivery phase.

This award follows the assistance of the Architectural Heritage Fund for concept design and planning application.   The Bushmills Trust, a community-owned registered charity that owns the former School, are hopeful that the next stage of the National Lottery grant will be a significant contribution to the capital cost of rescuing the building, including the reduction of the boundary walls so linking the school with the adjacent Housing Executive and Council Grounds to open up the whole are for community use.  

The National Lottery Heritage Fund has awarded funding to 15 projects to provide opportunities for local communities to learn heritage skills, positively impact the environment and biodiversity, and promote the regeneration of the UK’s built heritage.​ Combined, they will directly supply 87 jobs, apprenticeships, and over 620 volunteer roles, amounting to over 10,000 volunteer hours. Visitor numbers are set to increase across the board, with a forecasted audience of 1.28 million across projects in the coming years.  Altogether, they will facilitate over 17,000 public engagements and 18,000 heritage engagement and educational opportunities and lead to the redevelopment of over 1.06 million m2 of land, from riverscapes to castles, including the planting of over 100,000 trees. 

Eilish McGuinness, Chief Executive, The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said:

"These wonderful projects demonstrate the astonishing breadth of heritage that people value and want to pass onto future generations, from a Victorian workhouse to the famous Crystal Palace Park dinosaurs, and from one of the UK’s historic ports to our precious riverside habitats. 

"Thanks to money raised by National Lottery players over the last 30 years, we have worked with those who care for heritage and helped transformed the UK’s heritage landscape, contributing to communities and the economy. Our funding benefits all parts of the heritage ecosystem, including visitors, volunteers and the communities which surround it, and I cannot wait to see what the future brings as we work to deliver our vision for heritage to be valued, cared for and sustained for everyone, now and in the future."

Speaking to Explore Causeway Coast & Glens, Roy Bolton, Director of the Bushmills Trust, who now owns the former School, said;

"Rescue of the former school will not only provide a community hub particularly important for the adjacent social housing estate, but it will also be an incentive for tourists to explore the village as we are the gateway to the Giant’s Causeway, a UNESCO World Heritage Site attracting more than one million visitors annually.

"Our vision is to rescue the former National School, a historic landmark within the village of Bushmills built in 1842 as part of a National School programme for Ireland. Our project aims to restore this derelict structure, transforming it into a vibrant community hub, cultural asset, and welcome hub for visitors to the village and the Giant’s Causeway, a UNESCO World Heritage Site just two miles away.

"Our project aligns with broader efforts to address social and economic challenges, particularly in areas with high levels of deprivation, like the adjacent Dundarave estate, by offering opportunities for skill development, enterprise, and cultural enrichment.

"Ultimately, our vision is for the restored National School building to serve as a beacon of heritage, community pride, and opportunity in Bushmills, contributing to our village's sustainable development and well-being for generations to come".

Alderman Sharon McKillop said, "I'm excited to learn that the Bushmills Trust has secured funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, another stepping stone in seeing another prominent historic building in Bushmills restored to its former glory.

"I wish the Bushmills Trust every success in their future endeavours, bringing this important asset into use again for the benefit of the local community through a wide-ranging delivery of services and opportunities."