Mayo councillor rejects claims she spread misinformation about homeless accommodation centre
A local councillor has defended comments she made about a homeless accommodation centre in Mayo, insisting she did not spread any misinformation in relation to it.
Last month, Cllr Donna Sheridan raised concerns that The Olde Woods in Balla was being used as a homeless accommodation centre, and described the premises as unsuitable due to the lack of on-site support staff.
She also said that residents in Balla had not been made aware that the building was being used for this purpose and proposed holding a public meeting to address local concerns, However, she failed to gather support from her fellow councillors.
At the meeting, Director of Services at the council, David Mellett, clarified that there is no formal arrangement between the council and The Olde Woods.
He said that the only arrangement that exists is when the accomodation at Charlestown Lodge becomes full, the council uses other providers.
Following reports of the meeting the owners of The Olde Woods, the Dempsey family, responded to Cllr Sheridan’s comments via a statement released to the local media.
In it, they explained that the building is leased to an independent company and has been used since 2023 to house Ukrainian residents.
The family said that three of the 12 rooms were being used to house individuals on the homeless list on a short-term basis and explained this had been a recent arrangement.
The family said: "Contrary to misinformation, the majority of the premises is still occupied by Ukrainian residents, whom have been warmly welcomed into the community and have integrated very well, with many now employed and in education locally.”
They added they were disappointed by Cllr Sheridan’s comments, suggesting she had raised the issue without having the correct facts and had “engaged on a solo run based on gossip and innuendo”.
At the March monthly meeting of the Castlebar Municipal District, Cllr Sheridan, who is originally from Balla, said her character had “never been called into question in such a way” in her time as a local representative.
She rejected comments made by the Dempsey family and told the meeting she had submitted two FOI requests, which confirmed that the premises had been used for homeless accommodation since July, 31 2025.
“At no time did I misinform the meeting or the media. I said that The Olde Woods is being used as homeless accommodation, that is a correct fact that I checked with the Director of Services before I raised it,” she said.
She reiterated her previous comments, stating she felt The Olde Woods was “inappropriate” for use as a homeless accommodation centre as there is no full-time staff on site to care for residents.
“We need to do everything we can for homelessness in the middle of a bad crisis, but putting people into situations where there is no one on-site full-time is not acceptable,” she said.
The councillor added that the homeless accommodation at Charlestown Lodge was a good example of a suitable facility, as it offers on-site support for residents.
Further to this, Cllr Sheridan reported that residents in Balla had approached her with information that two individuals had recently been before the court and gave their address as The Olde Woods, describing this as “concerning”.
“I will continue to seek all the facts in relation to this through FOI requests,” she added.
This article has been funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.