About Religious Spaces in Transition

St Assam’s Church, Raheny, designed by Patrick Byrne in 1859-64, seen through the east window of the earlier parish church, now in ruins. St Assam’s church is no longer in use, having been replaced by the mid-20th century Church of Our Lady of Divine Grace, designed by Richard Joseph King. Photo: Niamh NicGhabhann.

Between 1830 and 1930, Irish urban and rural landscapes were transformed through the building and development activities of religious communities and orders. Many of the buildings constructed during this period are still actively used, while others are currently undergoing changes of use, or are falling into ruin. These include schools, convents, churches, recreational spaces and monasteries. This poses a challenge for the communities associated with these buildings, as well as for architectural historians, urban planners and heritage managers.

This project has been funded under Strand 2 (Knowledge Exchange for Impact) of the New Foundations Scheme by the Irish Research Council.

Project outputs include the development and delivery of a conference titled Religious Spaces in Transition and a project report which showcases international best practice in managing changes of use in relation to religious spaces and a bibliography of resources and research outputs.

The aim of the Religious Spaces in Transition project is to facilitate knowledge exchange between key stakeholders in managing religious spaces in Ireland.

Dr Niamh NicGhabhann (University of Limerick) is the PI for this project, and can be contacted at niamh.nicghabhann@ul.ie