St Vincent de Paul (SVP) have announced that they intend to close the Mountainview Centre on Norglen Gardens from the 11th of March this year, seeing 16 families and 18 children without childcare and 6 people without an income.

The decision to close the centre was taken after a "detailed review" that did not give parents or children attending the centre an opportunity to express their views, nor seemingly take into account any increased demand caused by the new Glenmona estate. The short notice and lack of engagement from SVP since the announcement has (we believe) shown a complete disregard for those impacted by this decision.

The closure of the centre will be the second loss of childcare facilities for parents in the Turf Lodge area after Ardmonagh Family Centre announced it is also closing later this year. The service offered by the centre has been a vital part of many lives for over 20 years and we are devastated by this news.

We are asking you to sign and share this petition; Join us in asking SVP to reconsider their decision and to involve the community they are impacting before taking action.

Thank you.