THE Department for Communities (DfC) has revealed the cost of the removal of graffiti which appeared at Enniskillen Castle last week.

As reported in this newspaper last week, graffiti of a religious and homophobic nature, spraypainted in a turquoise colour, appeared at Enniskillen Castle on Wednesday, July 14.

In response to queries by The Impartial Reporter, the DfC has revealed that it cost £980 to have the graffiti removed.

The removal of the graffiti took place on July 15, a day after it was reported to the PSNI, that is treating the incident as a "hate crime". The DfC have confirmed that the removal process took "less than a day".

A DfC spokesperson said: "The Department condemns the graffiti on Enniskillen Castle and would ask everyone to respect these important historical monuments."

Adding that graffiti removal from historic structures is a "very specialised job, requiring specific materials and equipment", the DfC spokesperson continued: "Equally important is the methodology employed – the work requires a very delicate approach, requiring choices to be made on the chemicals and equipment that should be used.

"This is dependent both on the nature [composition] of the graffiti itself, and the type of stonework to which it was applied.

"The nature of the stonework is key, as different approaches and materials may or may not be suitable depending on the fragility of the historic fabric," the spokesperson told this newspaper.