No council funding available to carry out accessibility audit of Letterkenny

There is currently no funding available in Donegal County Council to carry out an accessibility audit of Letterkenny.

That is the response that was issued to Cllr Jimmy Kavanagh, who brought a motion calling for an accessibility audit of Letterkenny to the January meeting of Letterkenny-Milford MD.

He asked: "That the council carry out or commission an accessibility audit of the town and put together a plan and budget to address the issues identified."

Cllr Kavanagh emphasised that Letterkenny should have an Accessibility Strategy as a town with a population exceeding 5,000, as cited in The National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025-2030. Commitment 12 of the Strategy also states that local authorities must ensure that there is a dedicated fulltime post for an Access and Inclusion Officer, in line with obligations under the Disability Act 2005.

Cllr Kavanagh said that a walkability audit of Letterkenny would provide beneficial information for maps of the town, and areas including public transport, access to public buildings and disabled parking would also need to be included in an accessibility audit.

He said the accessible Changing Places facilities at The Vestry in the Bernard McGlinchey Town Park and Century Complex have made “a big difference”. A Changing Places facility and public toilets are also nearing completion at Letterkenny Retail Park.

“Progress has been made but there’s still plenty more to do,” said Cllr Kavanagh. “We need to try to put together a work flow to identify funding. We need to look at all towns, but Letterkenny meets the criteria for population.

“We will need big input in resources for the new strategy, and every council needs to make a serious effort.”

He added that accessibility affects everyone in the town, and suggested writing to the Minister of State at the Department of Children, Disability and Equality, Emer Higgins. 

“We can’t just say there's no budget - we need to write to the government,” said Cllr Kavanagh.

READ NEXT: Call for Letterkenny’s Rosemount Area to become an Architectural Conservation Area

Cllr Donal Coyle seconded the motion, adding that “it doesn't make a pile of sense” that funding would be needed before an audit would be carried out.

The written response from the council, signed by David McIlwaine of the Roads and Transportation team, read: “There is currently no funding available for an accessibility audit in Letterkenny. Consultation can be had with the various Directorates of the Council to see if funding opportunities become available to carry out an audit.”