OPW gets permission to convert State's last Magdalene laundry into 'national site of conscience'

There are several specific conditions relating to the specialist conservation approach that will be required during construction on the site of the former Our Lady of Charity Magdalene Laundry on Sean McDermott St in Dublin, including a requirement for more detailed design in some areas, and the retention of some historic features in other areas. File photo: Julien Behal/PA

Planning permission has been granted to the Office of Public Works (OPW) to turn the State’s last Magdalene laundry, which closed almost 30 years ago, into a "national site of conscience”, with a memorial and research centre at its heart.

Dublin City Council granted planning, with 21 conditions attached, for the proposed transformation of the former Our Lady of Charity and Refuge Convent and Magdalene Laundry on Sean McDermott St to the National Centre for Research and Remembrance (NCRR), and for the development of an adjoining social housing apartment block.