Fingal moves on plans to plug in play areas in Loughshinny and Portrane

Loughshinny could be getting a new playground, Fingal County Council officials said on Thursday.

The council recently purchased a piece of land on the grounds of the Bartra Loughshinny Residential Nursing Home, according to Oliver Hoey, Fingal’s executive parks superintendent, at the Balbriggan/Rush-Lusk/Swords Area Committee on 9 April.

Just outside the village, the 1,000 sqm site was bought by the council from the landowner, JKP Nursing Home Limited, he said.

And it could help the council to address the lack of play provision in one of the more rural and remote parts of the county.

A 2023 play audit identified that there was a gap in play facilities in Loughshinny, he said. “There is no play provision there at the moment.”

That audit noted that between 2019 and 2023 the topic of providing new play spaces in Loughshinny appeared as an agenda item at the local area committee more than any other location within the Balbriggan/Rush-Lusk/Swords operational area.

But before they can build anything, the proposed “play space” needs to go out to consultation in May, and come back to the council in July for its approval, he said.

Not much parking

In line with the council’s current play policies, the proposed new play space in Lougshinny is expected to serve and be accessible to people one kilometre within a 1 kilometre radius, Hoey said during the briefing.

Their plan is to deliver a playground with 15 bits of play equipment, he said. “There’s natural elements in that. Sand play. Engineered wood fibre. Gravel paths. Water play.”

Surrounded by maze-like hedging, the playground’s circular design is inspired by the local Martello Tower, he said, “which will give the space a strong local identity”.

As well as including some benches and 14 parking spaces for bikes, there is the provision for one wheelchair-accessible car parking space, he said.

That was cause for concern among the local councillors.

Most people who are going to use it live three-quarters of a mile away downhill from this potential playground, said independent Councillor Cathal Boland.

Grandparents who might bring their grandchildren to play there would likely use cars in some instances, he said, “because of the incline from their homes to the playground”.

What consideration was given to that? he asked.

The design looks really well but the lack of car parking spaces was a concern, said independent Councillor Grainne Maguire. “You would like to think that the majority of the people will walk to it because it’s for a localised community.”

But playgrounds like this are popular, she said. “They will travel from Rush. They’ll travel from Skerries and Balbriggan to visit other playgrounds, so we need to be looking at that facility. So we need to be looking at that facility as to where people will park.”

Active travel

Loughshinny also needs a lot more active travel measures, said Labour Councillor Brendan Ryan. “So seeing this the way it is, we really need to re-evaluate the need for proper access by foot to the likes of these facilities which are very welcome.”

Some locals have been campaigning for almost 30 years to get safer footpaths on its roads, which are small, but also busy enough to make a simple walk to school almost impossible.

Fingal did its play audit to identify areas that don’t have play spaces so it can build them there and people won’t be travelling to regional playgrounds, Hoey said. “The provision of this is really for a local equipped area of play.”

If they are to provide parking, it would reduce the quality of the play space too, he said. “We have provided one accessible space for parking which can also obviously be used as a drop off point for people to drop off kids.”

Boland asked if the car parking spaces could be supplemented by way of the nursing home.

But, the nursing home is on private lands, Hoey said. “So the only land which we got was that which we purchased from the nursing home.”

There is a deficit here, Boland said. “It’s something that maybe your department could see whether there is some additional land which could be acquired now or into the future.”

If the playground is a success, it will give the council more in its “armoury” to try and secure some land, Hoey said.

The agreed budget for the play space is €350,000, he said. “And that is the budget we are aiming towards.” 

Councillors noted the report.

Play trail

After Hoey wrapped up the presentation for Loughshinny, he launched into a second presentation on another proposed play space, on lands just north of Longstone Park in Portane.

Similar to Loughshinny, Portrane was another area noted in the council’s 2023 play audit as lacking in playground facilities, he said. “An analysis of the available open space was conducted at that point, and we identified two spaces which we felt were optimum for the delivery of some play provision in the area.”

But, rather than provide a traditional playground, the council wants to make a “play trail” instead because of the layout of the land, he said. “So essentially it’s a walkway through with small play elements along with which people can stop and then move the space.”

Designed for children up to 12 years of age, the trail will have about 17 play items, he said.

There will also be bike parking, benches and a drinking water station, he said. “We’re also going to improve the entrance and access points.”

The council, in October, held an informal public consultation, which was attended by 12 locals, many of whom raised concerns that the playground would attract anti-social behaviour, and that there were no children living nearby.

But this isn’t just for Longstone Park, Hoey said at the meeting. “But for the wider area up to a kilometre away.”

More recently, in February, they held a formal consultation, which received 25 submissions, 19 of which were generally supportive, with some highlighting a need for a children’s play area, he said.

There were requests for facilities for teenagers at the site, but the space wasn’t big enough for that, he said, noting that construction is underway in Ballymastone for a recreational sports hub.

That, he said “is going to include a skate park, parkour, calisthenics and play facilities at that facility which is less than a kilometre away”.

The proposed play trail looks fantastic, but the area does have a huge issue with anti-social behaviour, said Labour Councillor Corina Johnston.

Were lights proposed on the trail? she asked. “I suppose that is something I’d like to see consideration given to.”

There’s no lighting at this point, Hoey said. “But what we are doing is we’ll put in ducting so that if it’s found that lighting would be an advantage, it’s very easy to upgrade and slot in lighting.”

Johnston also requested that the council carry out a review on how the trail is faring with residents.

A one-year review with residents and children would be an excellent idea to see how to improve the area going forward, said Hoey.

The next step for the play trail is that it will be brought before the full council for approval in the coming weeks, he said. 

Councillors noted that report too.