Location of ex-prisoner facility sparks concern

Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald has agreed to consider alternative locations for a step-down facility to house female ex-prisoners as the first choice site has provoked controversy being in the vicinity of no less than eight schools.

Westview House on Patrick’s Hill in Cork City is being considered by the Department of Justice as a facility to house females from Limerick Prison.

The proposed facility would house prisoners for the end of their jail time, post release, or as an alternative to a custodial sentence.