DfC Heritage Fair – Places and People

Published date: 16 October 2026

Three people sitting behind a table, one is holding a teddy bear with glasses. On the table are a laptop and promotional leaflets for PRONI. — The PRONI team at the EHOD Heritage Fair

The DfC Heritage Fair was organised in partnership between the Historic Environment Record of Northern Ireland (HERoNI) and the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI) to mark this year’s European Heritage Open Days (EHOD).

EHOD is an annual fixture in the calendars of heritage organisations all over Northern Ireland and this year HERoNI and PRONI wanted to create a space for heritage groups to come together in our shared space in Belfast’s Titanic Quarter.

Two people sitting behind a table with a blue tablecloth on it - Behind them are two pop-up banners advertising HERoNI — The HERoNI team at the EHOD Heritage Fair

The theme for this year’s EHOD was ‘Heritage at Risk – Revive Resist Reimagine’. This theme invited organisers to explore the stories behind the places they care about, airing the physical site with the human voices, memory, craft and culture that bring it to life.

The day consisted of a series of fascinating talks on the work of organisations like, Heritage at Risk NI Register (HARNI), the National Churches Trust, Belfast Buildings Trust and Great Place North Belfast. HERoNI invited Naoimh Quinn to speak about the development of a cold war bunker in South Belfast into an archival store for HERoNI. PRONI’s Head of Conservation, Sarah Graham, also delivered a talk about managing the risks to documentary heritage in Northern Ireland.

three women stand behind a podium at the top of a conference room in front of audience members. Behind them on the screen is a presentation with a blue background on the subject of the National Lottery Heritage Fund — Bronagh Murray introducing speakers from the National Lottery Heritage Fund

In the atrium of 2 Titanic Boulevard, sixteen groups exhibited at information stands including Libraries NI, Ordnance Survey Northern Ireland (OSNI), NI Screen, Ulster Historical Foundation, Mellon Centre for Migration Studies and National Lottery Heritage Fund. The information stands allowed members of the public the chance to speak with heritage experts from each of these organisations and ask questions about research and services.

A man wearing goggles working on sanding a window frame — The HED Conservation Works Team

Kathryn Weir, a speaker from OSNI said:

The OSNI team were delighted to attend the European Heritage Open Days (EHOD) event. Meeting people and organisations from across Northern Ireland working on promoting and protecting our heritage. It was a fantastic opportunity to talk about the products and services we provide, but also to deliver a presentation raising awareness of the Maps and Memories project and illustrating how OSNI uses modern technology to help protect heritage.