Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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1086.To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality to outline the costs of the modular, independent living units to be located at Castlerea, Shelton Abbey and Loughan House, broken down by the categories of cost, for example, security measures, delivery, labour, fittings and furniture, and so on.[34333/24]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The Irish Prison Service provides a range of accommodation types to assist in the management of sentences, to facilitate appropriate progression, and to support the transition from custody back into their community of people sentenced to a term of imprisonment.

The Service currently has a number of ongoing short, medium and long term projects to be delivered between 2024 and 2030 which will provide additional accommodation to meet the needs of the increasing prisoner population.

The Independent Living Units (ILUs) referred to by the Deputy are being delivered at “The Grove”, a semi-open area of Castlerea Prison, and at the two open centres at Loughan House and Shelton Abbey. Together they will provide an additional 30 spaces suitable for people sentenced to longer-terms of imprisonment who are preparing for release back into the community.

The ILUs will prepare such people for living independently following their release by providing an environment that requires personal responsibility similar to what will be needed outside the prison setting. They will allow individual responsibility to be taken for living spaces and will help improve life skills by enabling individuals to obtain basic skills such as cooking a meal, washing their laundry, cleaning and maintaining a home, while also interacting with others within a residential accommodation type complex.

These units are designed with reference to detailed specifications from the Office of Public Works design criteria and comply with the latest modern building standards. They have a lifespan up to 60 years and meet the requirements outlined in the Governments Climate Action Plan 2023.

Due to the nature of the information sought, and the fact that these construction projects are ongoing, it is not possible to provide the details asked for by the Deputy at this time.