Ballymount Castle ruins should remain as they are

THE ruins of Ballymount Castle in Ballymount Park should “remain as they are in their current condition”, according to South Dublin County Council.

The topic of the ruins was raised at a recent meeting of the Tallaght Area Committee by Fianna Fáil councillor Teresa Costello.

Cllr Costello said she was acting on behalf of the Kingswood Residents’ Association who wanted to know if the ruins could be reviewed by the council, and its heritage highlighted.

She also queried whether the castle could be added to South Dublin County Council’s Heritage Trail app, which lists heritage points of interest around the county.

In response, South Dublin County Council stated it had previously assessed Ballymount Castle, and consideration would be given to including it on the Heritage Trail app.

“The remaining structures in Ballymount Park including Ballymount Castle and gatehouse have been examined in the past by a conservation engineer to determine what conservation works, if any, were warranted,” stated the council.

“Following those surveys, conservation works were carried out to the gatehouse only, as this was determined by the conservation expert to be the appropriate course of action with regard to that structure.

“The remains of Ballymount Castle were considered at that time to be in a ruinous state and conservation works to these were not considered to be the appropriate course of action, due to their condition.

“The advice received from the council’s architectural conservation officer in relation to the Ballymount Castle ruins is that they should remain as they are in their current condition.

“Adding sites to the Heritage Trail app is something that is managed by the County Promotion unit.

“Details of Ballymount Castle will be referred to the County Promotion Unit following which the site will be assessed regarding location, accessibility and safety to determine if it is appropriate to add to the app.”

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