HIQA praises care at Dundalk’s Carroll Village but flags fire safety and governance concerns
The provider has committed to a series of improvements by late 2025
A recent unannounced inspection by the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) at Carroll Village in Dundalk, an accommodation centre for people seeking international protection, has found a high level of resident satisfaction with the services provided, but also revealed important areas for improvement in governance, risk management, and accommodation conditions.
Carroll Village, which consists of 21 own-door apartments, currently houses 88 residents which is slightly above its contracted capacity of 86. During the inspection in March 2025, HIQA inspectors spoke with 21 residents, including children and adults, and received written feedback from 27.
Residents described life at Carroll Village as "normal", with one person commenting, “we forget we are asylum seekers”. Others spoke of staff as “like family” and praised them for their kindness and helpfulness. Families are able to cook, clean, and live independently, with access to kitchen facilities, laundry machines, and weekly prepaid supermarket cards . Educational support was also highlighted as a strength, with all school-age children attending school and adults supported in accessing further education.
Despite these positive experiences, HIQA found that the governance structures and risk management systems in place were not fully effective. Staff were not on site after 5:30 p.m. during weekdays or at all on weekends even though visitor sign-in policies were only enforceable during office hours. This meant there was no oversight of visitor access during evenings or weekends.
Additionally, while monthly management meetings were held, there was no formal agenda or tracking of key issues like safeguarding or fire safety. The inspection also noted a lack of an annual review or a robust quality improvement plan.
Fire safety raised significant concern. Although fire drills had been conducted in one building, the second building had not been included until the inspection prompted immediate action. A follow-up drill was carried out within a week. HIQA issued an urgent request for corrective action, to which the provider responded by implementing additional fire safety education and training.
Another concern was overcrowding and insufficient privacy in some apartments. Two-bedroom apartments occasionally housed families with teenage children of different genders sharing rooms.. In one case, a toddler had not been provided with an appropriate bed until the inspectors flagged it.
While inspectors found that generally the apartments were clean and well furnished, they also found evidence of mould in several apartments and noted that maintenance systems were not always effective in tracking or resolving issues. While storage was available, not all residents were aware of this option, leading to suitcases being stored in living areas.
The centre had some processes in place to identify and support vulnerable residents, but of five sampled files, only one had a completed vulnerability assessment. While staff were praised for their person-centred support, policies lacked clear guidelines for identifying and responding to special reception needs.
ECCI Ireland, the provider of Carroll Village, has committed to a series of improvements by late 2025. These include, enhanced staff training and awareness of standards, a new digital system for tracking complaints and maintenance issues, clearer policies on fire safety, visitor management, and resident privacy and a comprehensive quality improvement plan based on resident feedback
The provider has already reduced the number of residents to its contracted limit and implemented additional fire drills, training, and apartment inspections.
The full report can be read here.