Department "assessing offer" to use Ballina site as IPAS centre

The Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth has confirmed that the former St Mary’s Secondary School building in Ballina has been offered as accommodation for International Protection Applicants (IPAS).

A Department spokesperson told the Western People that they are currently assessing the offer and should it be approved for use as an IPAS centre, their Community Engagement Team will make contact with local representatives, the local authority and other relevant groups in the advance of the arrival of people seeking international protection.

“This property has been offered as accommodation for international protection applicants and this offer is currently being assessed. All offers of accommodation have to be assessed but not all are deemed appropriate or suitable,” they said.

“Since many offers do not progress through the appraisal process, community engagement is usually focused at a later stage, when a property is closer to being brought into use or approved for use.

“If an offer is accepted, our Community Engagement Team make contact with elected representatives, the local authority and other relevant groups in advance of the arrival of people seeking international protection in an area,” they added.

The spokesperson added that they follow this process to help the local community understand the situation and to assist with the integration process.

“These measures improve the flow of information regarding arrivals into an area. They also help the local community understand the current situation and to assist with the welcome and integration process for new arrivals,” they said.

“The Department also works closely with a number of other government departments and non-governmental organisations to provide a wide range of supports to help new arrivals to integrate into an area as quickly as possible.”

At Monday’s meeting of the Ballina Municipal District, Cllr John O’Hara said he has received numerous calls from residents in the nearby Convent Hill area who expressed concern about the ongoing re-development of the former St Mary’s Secondary School.

“The households are not informed as to what is happening beside them. They don’t know if it is an IPAS centre or what, they haven’t been informed and would like to be,” he said.

“It is a situation they are not happy with at the moment,” he added.

Head of the Ballina Municipal District Declan Turnbull said the local authority was not dealing with the matter.

“It is a Department matter, not a local authority matter. If there is something being developed there, it is between the Department and the developer,” he said.

The former St Mary’s Secondary School site was used by the school until it moved into a new state-of-the-art facility nearby in September 2022. The site was then put up for sale privately last year and sold quite quickly.

A Section 5 declaration planning application was made to Mayo County Council last November by the applicant CH Care, a Dublin-based company, for the use of the former school located on McDermott Street as temporary accommodation for displaced persons seeking international protection. The property was then declared exempt from requiring planning permission by the local authority in a letter issued on November 28 last.

The ongoing works at the former St Mary’s Secondary School has no connection to the nearby Sisters of Mercy Convent project, which is a community-led project to rejuvenate the old Convent.