🛝 Give Our Children Back Their Playground: Restore Safety and Care to Library Road

Every child deserves a safe place to laugh, run, and play in a clean & safe environment.

We are calling on Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council to step up, protect our youngest residents, and restore Library Road Playground. 

A neighbourhood playground should be the heart of a community. It is where our toddlers can enjoy some independent play, where little ones make friends, and where parents go to find a moment of peace. It should be a sanctuary filled with joy, fresh air, and laughter.

Instead, Library Road Playground has been left to break down into a place of neglect and danger:

• 🚫 Unusable Toddler Play Tunnel: Scorched, toxic black soot and melted plastic fill the baby crawl tunnel from unaddressed fire damage. Equipment built specifically for little toddlers is now completely unusable.
• ⚠️ Constant Fear for Safety: Instead of watching their children play freely, parents are forced to scan the ground in fear, picking their way through broken glass shards, discarded cigarette butts, and litter.
• 💔 A Forgotten Space: While other parks in our county thrive and flourish, Library Road has been overlooked and left behind, sending a heartbreaking message to our local children that their play space doesn't matter.

🚨2 Months of Attempted Communication & Zero Action🚨
I have tried working through every official channel. A formal complaint was logged with Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council back on July 13th (REF: DLR-CRM 404160). Since then, multiple follow-up emails, photographic proof, and representations from local TDs and councillors have been sent to the Council Executive. Despite these repeated efforts over more than six weeks, no action has been taken to remove the toxic soot, repair the burnt equipment, or clear the dangerous glass from where our children play.

In a dense urban area like Dún Laoghaire, many of our families do not have large private back gardens. This playground is our children's backyard. It is their outdoor world. Forcing local mums, dads, and grandparents to turn away at the gate because the park is too unsafe for their little ones is an awful feeling, or guarding their every move out of fear for their safety instead of a space they can roam, explore and play safety.

Our kids shouldn't have to grow up playing around burnt equipment and broken glass. They deserve a clean, bright, and loving space to just be children.🌈

We are asking Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council to:

• 🧹 Clean the Hazards Now: Immediately deep-clean the toxic soot from the baby tunnel, repair the fire damage, and clear all glass and litter.
• 🗓️ Give Us a Promise: Provide our community with a clear, honest date for when these safety repairs will be finished.
• ✨ Bring Back the Joy: Commit to a rejuvenation of Library Road Playground so our children have a park they can be proud of.

Please sign and share this petition. ✍️👇 Let’s stand together for our children’s safety, happiness, and right to play.