Planning lodged for new Cleary Centre for adults with intellectual disabilities

A rollercoaster campaign which began a decade ago has come a step closer to fruition, with the HSE having lodged planning permission to demolish and replace the Cleary Centre,

The planning application is for “demolition of the existing derelict property to construct a new single storey day services centre for adults with disabilities, with ancillary private open space, car parking and all associated landscaping works, site works and service installations.”

The former primary school building is situated at Drumlonagher, Donegal Town. It was used as a centre for adults with intellectual disabilities for many years before the building was deemed unfit for purpose in 2014. 

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In 2015, families were informed that service users would be allocated places in a number of other centres further afield, to which they would be taken by bus. 

This was absolutely devastating for the close knit community of service users, and thus began the campaign to keep the Cleary group together. From a rally in Donegal Town to a protest at Dáil Eireann, and much support from public representatives and the wider community, the service users in their families were relentless in their quest. 

Good news came at the start of 2016 when it was announced that the group would move to a temporary facility in the old Victor factory building near Abbott’s. This was supposed to be a short-term move, with the new facility due to be ready for use within five years.

But as one year rolled into the next without any allocation of capital funding, alarm bells began to ring, and the frustration deepened.

Finally, towards the end of 2019 it was announced that the new facility on the site of the old Cleary Centre would be included in the HSE’s 2020 Capital Plan. Given the timing - with a general election looming - this announcement was welcomed with a hefty degree of cynicism.

Then came the Covid-19 pandemic, during which time the HSE-owned Cleary Centre building was used as a test centre

It would be April 2021 before a capital budget of €2.4m was finally approved, to include design, construction, equipment and all associated costs. 

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Next came the design stage, with a team established to include a nominee from the South Donegal Parents and Friends Group, the manager of the Cleary Centre, the HSE Estates Project Officer and a Disability Services Manager.

The project having finally reached the planning stage is certainly welcome. While there is still a long way to go, it is a huge step towards the service users taking their places in the promised purpose-built facility.