The Department of the Environment has served an Urgent Works Notice on the agent for the owner of the former National School, Bushmills.

The school is a listed building built as part of a nationwide initiative launched in 1830 by Edwin Stanley, Chief Secretary for Ireland and later Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

The building is not watertight and is not well secured.

The Department of the Environment has tried repeatedly to encourage the owner to take steps to remedy the situation, to no avail. It has now issued a notice which outlines the action it will take to carry out emergency works if the owner does not initiate these within seven days.

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Environment Minister Mark H Durkan said: "The serving of this Notice is a further tangible commitment by my Department to Bushmills' rich heritage and builds on previous funding to tackle dereliction in Portrush and Portstewart. Our listed buildings are jewels from the past which we need to conserve for now and future generations. Once gone they can never be brought back.

"Listed buildings attract much tourism and there is always the potential to develop this further by securing and preserving them. I am determined that we should do that and this Urgent Works Notice is an example of that determination."

(CD/MH)