An Coimisiún Pleanála to decide expansion of Roscrea IPAS centre

The owners of the former Racket Hall Hotel in Roscrea, Swiftcastle Ltd, has lodged an appeal with An Bord Pleanála following Tipperary County Council’s refusal to approve plans for a significant expansion of its Direct Provision centre near Roscrea.

The operator had sought permission to add 60 bedrooms to the facility at Racket Hall, part of Ireland’s International Protection Accommodation Services (IPAS) network.

The property, located beside Roscrea Golf Club just outside the town, was converted from a hotel into an IPAS accommodation centre amid strong local opposition which saw a 10 week long protest at the gates of the site.

The council cited several reasons for refusing planning permission, including that the site is not zoned or designated for residential use. Swiftcastle is now seeking to overturn the decision through the national planning authority.

Swiftcastle have now appealed the local authority ruling to An Coimisiún Pleanala in a bid to have the refusal overturned.
Swiftcastle (Roscrea) Ltd had sought permission to increase accommodation at the centre from 40 to 100 bedrooms.

The additional bedrooms were to be contained in a three-storey wing extension.

The plan drew several objections, including one from Roscrea Chamber of Commerce and one from local councillor Shane Lee.

The site was a focus of national media attention in January of last year when protests greeted the opening of a Direct Provision accommodation centre for 160 residents at the former Racket Hall Country House Hotel.

In its planning application to the council, Swiftcastle cited figures from the International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS), which regulates Direct Provision centres, and reported a significant increase in demand for accommodation.

As of May 18, 2025, County Tipperary was providing accommodation for 892 people in these centres and there was a “growing demand” for additional accommodation.

“In light of the increasing demand shown in the IPAS data, this planning application proposes a significant opportunity for expansion of the existing facility,” the applicant’s agent informed the council.

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In their objection to the development, Roscrea Chamber of Commerce said a 100-bedroom hotel would be a “huge boost” for the town.

“However, an additional 60 bedrooms being added to the current operating 40-bedroom IPAS centre at Racket Hall would be hugely detrimental to town centre business,” Secretary Michael Madden wrote on behalf of the Chamber.

“Roscrea has not coped well with the huge increase in a diverse population in such a short space of time, adding pressure to services locally. Local businesses have seen a noticeable drop in footfall and turnover since the first IPAS centre opened four years ago in Sean Ross Abbey, followed by a Ukrainian centre two years ago on the Convent Hill and a further IPAS centre at Racket Hall in early 2024.

“The businesses of Roscrea feel that the town has taken more than its fair share of international protection applicants and unfortunately, for one reason or another, it has had a negative impact on business in the town.”

Roscrea based County Councillor, Shane Lee objected to the application on several grounds and also led a campaign for local people to object.

The Roscrea Councillor objected to what he described as the “unjustified intensification of use on a disconnected and constrained site”.

He argued there was a lack of required environmental assessment; that the site was not zoned for further development under the Tipperary County Development Plan, and that the site drainage proposals were inadequate.

“It should be noted that the existing car park is actually at full capacity at present, without any additional development,” Cllr Lee said in his objection.

He also highlighted figures from the 2022 census showing that the population of Roscrea grew by 4.8% between 2016 and 2022.

“The population living in disadvantaged areas increased by 42.2%, from 2,349 to 3,340,” Cllr Lee submitted.

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“Two small areas in Roscrea are now classified as ‘extremely disadvantaged’, with 8.7% of the ED’s population living in such areas – four times the national average. These figures exclude the recent increase in the local IPAS population.

“Adding further strain on already stretched social infrastructure – such as medical, dental and education services – poses a risk of significant adverse consequences for existing and new residents,” Cllr Lee told the local authority.