OPW says repair work at Offaly reformatory will expand museum storage space

THE work taking place on the former Daingean reformatory building is routine repair, the Office of Public Works (OPW) has said.

The OPW released a statement to the Tullamore Tribune following speculation locally that the building is being readied for use as a refugee accommodation centre.

The statement said: “The former reformatory at Saint Conleths, Townparks, Daingean, Co Offaly is a state owned property currently in use for storage by the National Museum of Ireland.

“The site includes a number of separate buildings several of which are included in Offaly County Council’s Record of Protected Structures (RPS) as part of their 2021-2027 Development Plan. As a protected structure the state has an obligation to prevent it from falling into disrepair.

“The Office of Public Works Property Maintenance unit regularly carry out repair works at the site and a number of different projects are in design or on site at present. The works currently under way at the site are to a part of the main building referred to as the Carpentry Wing. The works include reroofing including timber repairs, rainwater goods and drainage, structural repair to internal timber floors, repair of external render and masonry, repair of existing windows plus minor electrical services to install fire detection, general services and emergency lighting. Future projects include roof and window repair works to the former Laundry building, structural stabilisation works to the plaster cast wing as well as on-going maintenance.

“These works once completed will enable additional storage facilities for use by the National Museum of Ireland.”

Earlier, the government department which leases buildings for refugee accommodation said the property is not currently contracted by it.

A local Fine Gael representative, Cllr Liam Quinn, has written to the OPW and the Department of Justice requesting information about the future use of the building.

His letters followed rumours that the reformatory was going to be used as a centre for either Ukrainian refugees or people seeking international protection in Ireland.

St Conleth’s Reformatory School for Boys was run as an industrial school by the Oblate order for the State until its closure in November 1973.

It accommodated more than 100 boys in a building which was originally a military barracks.

The National Museum of Ireland has been using it as a storage facility for part of its Irish Folklife collection but some of the items were transferred to another of the museum's centres in Swords.

A former hotel and public house in Daingean, the Sportman's Inn, is already accommodating more than 30 people from Ukraine.