Hillsborough Castle has reopened today, 18 April, after an extensive refurbishment project was completed on the historic site.

The £20 million works were delivered to open the site to the widest possible audience and offer the best possible visitor experience.

The castle was built in the 18th century by the Hill family, who also gave the town of Hillsborough its name. The house has hosted numerous world dignitaries and serves as the Queen's official residence in Northern Ireland.

A team from Irwin M&E has been working on site at Hillsborough Castle since August 2017, after winning the contract to supply the full mechanical and electrical services installation for the upgrade works, including a new visitors' centre.

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The project was made up of several separate buildings, spread over an extensive site including the Upper Stable Yard, the Lower Courtyard, the Clore Learning Centre and the Operations Base.

The courtyard area at the lower end of the estate was redeveloped into a multi-functioning space with café, shop, visitor information, ticketing and meeting spaces for visitors, schools and groups arriving by car and coach.

"Irwin M&E has a strong track record in the Heritage sector and Hillsborough Castle is another great project to add to our portfolio," commented Keith Stewart, Irwin M&E Managing Director. "We also carried out major works at Mount Stewart, a project that attracted huge public interest, particularly during the television series that followed the progress of the restoration; and at Rathfarnham Castle in Dublin.  

"Our team has built up many specialist skills required for working on heritage buildings. For example, working on the recycling and refurbishment of original heritage lighting, such as picture lights and free-standing lamps. At the Castle, these were retrofitted with new cables and plugs as well as low energy LED light bulbs."

Hillsborough Castle's reopening also coincides with World Heritage Day, which recognises monuments and sites across the world.

(CM/MH)