The decision to refuse a school extension has been overturned on appeal.

The Limerick County Council previously refused Castleroy school, Gaelscoil Chaladh an Treoigh, permission to convert storage sheds into an assembly hall.

Earlier this year the school submitted the plans for the conversion on the Monaleen Road site, a facility for which they said there was "an urgent need". But these plans were refused permission by the County Council on traffic safety grounds.

Pupils at the school, whose numbers currently stand at 225, have been in temporary buildings since the school was founded 10 years ago and the board of management is working with the Department of Education on providing a permanent school on the Dublin Road.


The new building is however "at least two and a half years away", the board wrote in its appeal to An Bord Pleanala.

An Bord Pleanala inspector Hugh Mannion, who visited the site last month, largely agreed with the assessment of the Council’s roads department, who had cited restricted fields of vision at the site entrance, difficulties oncoming motorists had in seeing the entrance and a limited set-down area.

Mr Mannion recommended refusing permission saying the site was "unsuited for the provision of a school".

But the planning appeals board chose not to accept Mr Mannion’s recommendation and granted permission, stating the plans would not "add in a material way to traffic movements".

(LB/GK)