A supervised playground on Library Road in Dun Laoghaire is in danger of losing its adult supervision after Crosscare, the organisation that runs the service, has threatened to cease the operation.
The playground has been supervised for “at least 30 years” says People Before Profit TD Richard Boyd Barrett and “generations of locals and their kids” have availed of the service.
Originally supervised by Catholic Youth Care up until about a decade ago, the playground is one of only a handful of supervised kids play areas in the county.
Deputy Boyd Barrett says that after CYC pulled out of running the service 10 years ago, a successful campaign to retain the service saw Crosscare step in and keep on the same supervisors.
Now, however, Crosscare are threatening to pull out of the service due to currently unknown reasons.
Deputy Boyd Barrett says Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council own the property and is hoping “the council step in and retain the supervision by employing the supervisors or identifying some other agency that will take over the supervision.
“The council isn’t sitting at the moment so we’re going to put it on the first council meeting agenda when it returns. I have written to Katherine Zappone about it as well and asked her if she can use any influential and try and keep the supervision retained.
“The plan is to bring it up in the first council meeting and probably have a rally before the meeting in September with parents and local residents to urge the council or another state agency and step in and retain the supervision.”
Deputy Boyd Barrett says that the supervised playground is a secure environment and many parents rely on the service to help kids that would otherwise not be adept at socialising, feel safe.
Crosscare had not replied for comment on the situation by the time of publication.
