The Rubrics, the oldest building on Trinity’s campus and Ireland’s longest-serving purpose-built residential building, has reopened after an 18-month conservation and restoration project. 

L-R: Prof Kevin O'Kelly; bursar Eleanor Denny; provost Dr Linda Doyle; Prof Andrew Somerville and Prof Cliona O' Farrelly.

The beautiful red-brick building, built between 1699 and 1705, will now be home to new staff while they ‘find their feet’ in Dublin, as well as provide short-term accommodation for visiting scholars, student accommodation and a new reading room with facilities to enable retired academic colleagues to continue to participate in projects. 

The building now includes nine student rooms, 17 studios/one-bed apartments, and five guest rooms. 

Sustainability at heart of conservation project

Sustainability has been at the heart of the conservation project, designed to achieve modern performance standards in this historical building while respecting its heritage. 

The work on the building included critical structural works and the installation of ground-source heat pumps which are now servicing all the heating and 80% of the hot water requirements of this 320-year-old building.  

There has been a 40% improvement in the buildings fabric thermal performance and it is predicted that there will be a 75% reduction in primary energy use and CO2 emissions for the building.  

'Traditional building crafts meet innovative and sustainable technologies'

After the official opening of the retrofitted Rubrics last night, bursar Eleanor Denny said: “The Rubrics is a true landmark on Trinity’s campus. What has been achieved with this beautiful building – in preserving its historic nature while ensuring it can meet modern energy standards – is extraordinarily exciting. This project will be a pathfinder for future projects involving our heritage estates. It demonstrates the opportunities that exist when traditional building crafts meet innovative and sustainable technologies.” 

This is not the first significant change for this building. 

The Rubrics formed part of the original quadrangle of red-bricked residential buildings around Library Square, which included the Old Library to the south. After the 1850s, the other buildings of the quadrangle were gradually demolished to leave the free-standing Rubrics buildings. The third floor was added in 1894. 

The project sponsor for this building was Prof Kevin O’Kelly, with Patrick Griffin the built environment project manager and Stephen Walsh the programme manager. 

Clancy Construction was the main contractor, working with Pascal and Watson Architects, Carrig Conservation, AECOM and consultants WH Stephens.  

At the AUDE Awards 2023, the Rubrics was Commended in the category 'The University Impact Initiative of the Year'. 

The Rubrics also won the 'Retrofit of a building' award at the Towards Net Zero Awards 2023 held in the RDS on November 10, 2023.