There is nothing to do with kids in Balbriggan!!

ischia

Hi,

I am writing this to express my despair at the lack of resources in Balbriggan. It has slowly creeped up on me that there is nothing to do with kids here.


Playgrounds

The playground beside the crèche is destroyed. There is graffiti (some sexual) dirty nappies and holes burned into the ground. It is absolutely filthy. You would be worried what your child could catch.

The other playground which was quite good is also now in tatters. The playground behind the Guarda station, a friend told me has had the slide and big swing removed because of damage.

Dog Poo

The amount on dog poo on the foot path is shocking.. particularly on Flemington Lane. On the way to play school before Christmas my 3 year old fell in dog poo and we had to turn around and go home.

How can you even go on a nice walk with the sheer amount of poo with clumsy kids falling?

Irresponsible dog owners

Recently while out with my 2 kids.. a man walked around the corner with 3 pit bull terriers OFF THEIR LEAD AND WITHOUT A MUZZLE.

I asked him to put them back on the lead at which point he told me they are harmless. I again asked him saying "If you don't mind can you please put the back on the lead they are a dangerous breed" Again he told me no.
When I got around the corner I rang the guards who told me it wasn't their problem.. to ring the dog warden.. who consequently need his address.

I now see this idiot all the time walking around residential areas with these dogs who are always unleashed and never have a muzzle.

The Beach

The one great thing about Balbriggan was the beach. But last summer sewerage pumped into the sea for a sustained period of time and now its a no go area. There have also been reports of a rat infestation on the beach they are trying to get under control.

We have no access to a car during the day so are in Balbriggan where everything needs to be a walking distance. Like a lot of people we are stuck in a negative equity house and are going no where. I suppose I am realising we are living in a town with no or very little amenities.

So does anyone know of anything to do with kids in Balbriggan?? I am at my wits end especially with the nice weather coming in. There is only so many walks around Tesco I can do ...

Thanks for reading sorry for the rant

BMJD

The new Flemington Community Centre has various classes and things for children . You can call in and get a timetable as I can't find it online.

The town hall also has some activities for kids such as gymboree, the library also has lots of books, CDs etc. in the childrens section.

PJs Playcentre is also good for keeping them entertained, might be a bit of a walk depending on where you live.

There is also the cinema.

You could take the 33 bus to the Lady's Stairs footbridge and go for a long walk around Ardgillan, the playground there is really good! The castle itself has the tea rooms for a cup of tea/coffee afterwards. They also host exhibitions and art & craft things from time to time.

I wouldn't disagree with the rest of your post

tatli_lokma

OP, whilst I do sympathise, can I ask what social contribution you have made to the area in which you live? Not having a go, but it is very easy to complain but the problem is lots of people complain and not many actually do anything. Community groups need 'community' members to be sustained. The apathy of many residents is the issue. In my parental home we had a residents association. People took it upon themselves to give their free time to participate. They organised social events, outings for the kids, a sports festival each year, concerts etc. I have tried without success to initiate similar in my area (and I don't even have kids) but the apathy I face is overwhelming. Everyone is keen to join so long as they don't have to do anything, once they find out that they would have to pay a nominal amount in dues and may be needed to volunteer some of their time (and I am talking maybe one weekend a month, or for an event a few hours to supervise etc) and then they say 'ah no, I don't have time/can't be bothered'.

As for the other issues such as the state of the playgrounds - well I agree, but again, the vandalism is caused by our own teens. I would recommend contacting Fingal to lodge a complaint. Also your local representatives should be complained to and reminded that if they want votes they need to start taking more of an interest.

Finally, as to the dog poo, well I agree it is unpleasant and people should pick up after themselves, but a spot of sh!t never did us any harm as a kid so I wouln't be overly worried about that! character forming And personally I haven't noticed a particularly terrible problem with dog fouling myself. The odd 'deposit' but nothing so bad as you describe. If you are concerned about the dogs not on leads I am sure you can surrepticiously find out where this gentleman lives and then let the dog warden know. But on an aside, don't just assume because they are pit bull type dogs that they are dangerous - this poor breed gets a bad name not from its own behaviour but from irresponsible dog ownership.

Morpheus

how old are your kids?
are they yet involved with the likes of football, GAA or beavers,cubs, girlguides or scouts?
library?
walk along beach to gormanston?
walk out the skerries road?
contact the dog warden and ask them to do their job, you are not an investigator, they should be doing random patrols in the area too.
although pitbulls are a dangerous breed, if raised properly they pose no harm - that is purely to put you to ease, but i disagree completely with any dogs being off a leash and also for those classed as dangerous breeds to be unmuzzled. also why the hell can people living in small houses in estates be allowed to keep multiple numbers of large domestic dogs in one house ill never understand.
i grew up in the town and always had stuff to do as a kid - but they were far safer and more innocent times sadly and the town was a beautiful seaside village. I live in the new area near dunnes and its sadly become more rundown over the last few years. sooner the council takes over the estates there the better.

RobFowl

My kids have over the years gone to GAA, Cricket, football, Tae kwan do and tennis all in and around Balbriggan.
The Parks in Ardgillan re fabulous for all ages,
The Beach was polluted for a short period but is now fine (although not blue flag standard).
PJ's is great for them to play in and the cinema is local and has a childrens film on every week.
There are lots of cycle lanes and the coastal walk is lovely especially for slightly older ones.
The library is well stocked and has a great kids section.

As they say in Month Python what have the Romans done for us.....

Dors1976

I agree with the others, there is lots to do. The beach is fine, there is lots of green space to kick a ball/have a picnic in. I think playgrounds are fine during the day, grafitti and vandalisim are unfortunatley a way of life and you could take pictures and email them to your local representative.

You could call into the citizens advice, they have great information.

What ages are your kids? Maybe if you let us know we could advise you more.

There is a Parent and Toddler group twice a week in the Order of Malta hall from 10-12.

There's a great list of classes here - http://balbriggan.info/clubs_and_classes_in_balbriggan.shtml

kaisersoze

As much choice as was available to me at the time, I chose to live in Balbriggan...
For what we spent on the house, it was probably the best option at the time.
There is an abundance of parks and walks within 20 mins of town
With the amount of clubs, parks beach etc..Its not a bad place to live or raise kids.
Could think of worse.

tatli_lokma

As they say, it is what you make of it! a bit of imagination goes a long way!
I remember as a kid we would go to ardgillan and look for fairies! or my sister who was great at the aul storytelling would make up stories about elves and witches who lived in the woods. But then again, we were easy pleased in my day! lol

ischia

Thank you for all your replies.

My kids are 4 and 2. So some activities are not of their age group GAA/Tennis/Rugby/Scouts.

I think Soccer is the only one that has a young team.. from 4 years which might be good when it starts back.

We had a look at Flemington Lane Community Centre activities and while they are all great.. they are really for older kids. We tried out basketball.. which said was for 3 and over and it was just really aimed at over 7s. They were a bit lost with the younger kids.
We tried the Tai Quan Do and we were told that at 4 years our child was too young so come back next year which was a pity really.
The community centre itself has great facilities so it would be great if you had older kids.


Ardgillan is wonderful.. the playground and the grounds itself are brilliant for the kids..but quite difficult to get to without the car. I didn't know the 33 left you anywhere near it so thank you for letting me know.

Cinema and PJs are great now and again, especially in the bad weather but I was looking for something out doors.

LittleTed.
I have contributed to my area by generally cleaning up the rubbish strewn on the road, reporting dumped bags which have been thrown at the side of my road, cutting the grass that fingal no longer cut and tending to trees on my road. The problem with my area is that it has a high population of people renting. A residents association was set up and it became obvious that there was a clear divide between residents and the landlords renting their properties had no interest in helping with the up keep of the area or even telling their tenants to keep their own area tidy. So we are up against it for organising community events... which I personally think would be great for the area.


I suppose reading back on my post there seems to be no where to ride bikes, or go on scooters to let them walk around like I said without the issue of dog poo, dogs off leads etc. Yes there are parks gormanstown or the promenade at skerries but they are quite inaccessible without a car. The green area between Moylaragh and Chieftans is a mess..whoever designed it. There was no effort to make it a proper field for kids to play. I am no expert at these things but could they have no made an attempt to flatten it so kids could play ball games without the ball rolling out onto the road?

I am also going to make an effort to find out about the playgrounds if Fingal are running them.. if there is anything people could do to keep them in any way respectable. While graffiti is predictable you can not accept the filthy state some have become.

I will look into all the suggestion including contacting Fingal to find out if the beach is safe and the surrounding green areas following the spillage.. it would be great to even have that.

kaisersoze

Have you tried setting up a residents association?
We do a community cleanup once in spring and once end of summer
Fingal are good at offering help with litter pickers bags etc

I agree there is a problem with dog crap on the main thoroughfares but again I think it would be worthwhile trying to find the positives

There is a good beach ok the Drogheda side of the town for rock pooling, if you can dodge the poo, there is good walk around town for kids scooters etc up by sheep on the way up towards Naul road!

I'm here over 10 years and still finding my way around :-)

ischia wrote: »

Thank you for all your replies.

My kids are 4 and 2. So some activities are not of their age group GAA/Tennis/Rugby/Scouts.

I think Soccer is the only one that has a young team.. from 4 years which might be good when it starts back.

We had a look at Flemington Lane Community Centre activities and while they are all great.. they are really for older kids. We tried out basketball.. which said was for 3 and over and it was just really aimed at over 7s. They were a bit lost with the younger kids.
We tried the Tai Quan Do and we were told that at 4 years our child was too young so come back next year which was a pity really.
The community centre itself has great facilities so it would be great if you had older kids.


Ardgillan is wonderful.. the playground and the grounds itself are brilliant for the kids..but quite difficult to get to without the car. I didn't know the 33 left you anywhere near it so thank you for letting me know.

Cinema and PJs are great now and again, especially in the bad weather but I was looking for something out doors.

LittleTed.
I have contributed to my area by generally cleaning up the rubbish strewn on the road, reporting dumped bags which have been thrown at the side of my road, cutting the grass that fingal no longer cut and tending to trees on my road. The problem with my area is that it has a high population of people renting. A residents association was set up and it became obvious that there was a clear divide between residents and the landlords renting their properties had no interest in helping with the up keep of the area or even telling their tenants to keep their own area tidy. So we are up against it for organising community events... which I personally think would be great for the area.


I suppose reading back on my post there seems to be no where to ride bikes, or go on scooters to let them walk around like I said without the issue of dog poo, dogs off leads etc. Yes there are parks gormanstown or the promenade at skerries but they are quite inaccessible without a car. The green area between Moylaragh and Chieftans is a mess..whoever designed it. There was no effort to make it a proper field for kids to play. I am no expert at these things but could they have no made an attempt to flatten it so kids could play ball games without the ball rolling out onto the road?

I am also going to make an effort to find out about the playgrounds if Fingal are running them.. if there is anything people could do to keep them in any way respectable. While graffiti is predictable you can not accept the filthy state some have become.

I will look into all the suggestion including contacting Fingal to find out if the beach is safe and the surrounding green areas following the spillage.. it would be great to even have that.

cathy01

I took my Jenny to a craft frair they had a great set up.for ten euro the kids get make their own plaster of Paris art thing .the. Paint them.it takes about two hours.mam stay and watch or if possible grab a cup of tea. The guy does it on a pop up tent so no messing. Now for me a tenner and she's having fun with her frie ds pain it f etc . In the front garden.i might ask the guy to do party grow thing and invite her friends around tell them mams to give a tenner and a sambo .if it happens your more then welcome .see how he goes it was great she loved it but wear old clothes.:-)

Dors1976

kaisersoze wrote: »

There is a good beach ok the Drogheda side of the town for rock pooling, if you can dodge the poo, there is good walk around town for kids scooters etc up by sheep on the way up towards Naul road!

We love that beach!

Have you tried the toddler group? You might find a few like minded people there - I made great friends there.

Try O'Dwyers GAA, my son started the nursery at 4. Also there is a Karate club on a Wednesday at 5 in the combined clubs and there are lots of smallies from 4+.

Do your children go to play school, maybe ask some moms there or ask the playschool, someone will have more for you.

There is a great park beside the large church in the town and there is another huge green at Ashfield.

Or ask some people in your resident's association, I find that people who have kids a bit older usually have a fair idea of activities

cathy01

The remember us , the social group or kids with special needs, their family and friends?Thats good.

Mr.Wemmick

I must say, ischia, when it comes to dog poo I totally agree with you. I live in Skerries and I am aghast at how bad it is here too (it is even on the beach :mad:). I have been on to the council about it and have had a chat with the street cleaners when I see them (they never seem to get rid of it, as far as I can tell) and they have said there is little they can do if they do not see it happening, or find out which dog owner is responsible..

I have just returned from an Easter break in Kilkenny town and didn't see any on the streets or in the castle grounds path ways. I know as I am so use to watching the foot path like a hawk in Skerries when out walking with the kids, that it is now an ingrained habit. In Kilkenny I didn't see any.. so why is it so prevalent here in Skerries and Balbriggan?

I don't think Dog poo on kids or kids' clothes is character forming, I think it is disgusting and a health hazard, end of.. and I don't understand why more parents aren't up in arms about it.

cathy01

There are no bins as you walk along the back road to the beach.not saying if there was anyone would use them but it might help.oh I hate going down the town with the pram , it's like dodge ball but with a pram and pooh.i did ask one of my neighbours to clean up after his dog before and he said his wife follows him and does it for him:-(
Another time a neighbours dog came into my garden and poohed on one of the kids toys .i nearly made the owner wear it .its shameful.sometimes I understand , an eldearly person or someone who CAN'T bend down I would understand a little , perhaps they don't know there are tools to help.but people who stand there and watch as their dog does it and walk off make my blood boil. I now do t hesitate in asking them to pick it up .

Mr.Wemmick

cathy01 wrote: »

There are no bins as you walk along the back road to the beach.not saying if there was anyone would use them but it might help.oh I hate going down the town with the pram , it's like dodge ball but with a pram and pooh.i did ask one of my neighbours to clean up after his dog before and he said his wife follows him and does it for him:-(
Another time a neighbours dog came into my garden and poohed on one of the kids toys .i nearly made the owner wear it .its shameful.sometimes I understand , an eldearly person or someone who CAN'T bend down I would understand a little , perhaps they don't know there are tools to help.but people who stand there and watch as their dog does it and walk off make my blood boil. I now do t hesitate in asking them to pick it up .

Agreed. My poor neighbour got caught a few weeks back. She came back from a walk with the baby and the pram wheels were covered in it and she couldn't bring it into the house without cleaning it first. As she tried to settle and feed the baby indoors, it poured rain and so the pram got drenched inside and out.. when I came back later in the day, I rang her door to let her know the pram was out in the rain.. anyway, she was understandably frazzled.. you can't have dog poo on shoes, buggy wheels brought into the house and have a baby crawling about on the floor. It's vile..

On Monday morning taking the kids to school it's spot-the-dog-poo time and then remember where it is on the pavement for the rest of the week as it's there for days on end, until more is added. I am glad Summer time is here as I hated walking along footpaths/pavements in the dark and not being able to see it..
I often wonder how joggers manage

leelee77

ischia wrote: »

Thank you for all your replies.

My kids are 4 and 2. So some activities are not of their age group GAA/Tennis/Rugby/Scouts.

I think Soccer is the only one that has a young team.. from 4 years which might be good when it starts back.

We had a look at Flemington Lane Community Centre activities and while they are all great.. they are really for older kids. We tried out basketball.. which said was for 3 and over and it was just really aimed at over 7s. They were a bit lost with the younger kids.
We tried the Tai Quan Do and we were told that at 4 years our child was too young so come back next year which was a pity really.
The community centre itself has great facilities so it would be great if you had older kids.


Ardgillan is wonderful.. the playground and the grounds itself are brilliant for the kids..but quite difficult to get to without the car. I didn't know the 33 left you anywhere near it so thank you for letting me know.

Cinema and PJs are great now and again, especially in the bad weather but I was looking for something out doors.

LittleTed.
I have contributed to my area by generally cleaning up the rubbish strewn on the road, reporting dumped bags which have been thrown at the side of my road, cutting the grass that fingal no longer cut and tending to trees on my road. The problem with my area is that it has a high population of people renting. A residents association was set up and it became obvious that there was a clear divide between residents and the landlords renting their properties had no interest in helping with the up keep of the area or even telling their tenants to keep their own area tidy. So we are up against it for organising community events... which I personally think would be great for the area.


I suppose reading back on my post there seems to be no where to ride bikes, or go on scooters to let them walk around like I said without the issue of dog poo, dogs off leads etc. Yes there are parks gormanstown or the promenade at skerries but they are quite inaccessible without a car. The green area between Moylaragh and Chieftans is a mess..whoever designed it. There was no effort to make it a proper field for kids to play. I am no expert at these things but could they have no made an attempt to flatten it so kids could play ball games without the ball rolling out onto the road?

I am also going to make an effort to find out about the playgrounds if Fingal are running them.. if there is anything people could do to keep them in any way respectable. While graffiti is predictable you can not accept the filthy state some have become.

I will look into all the suggestion including contacting Fingal to find out if the beach is safe and the surrounding green areas following the spillage.. it would be great to even have that.

PJ's has a mother & toddler morning every Wednesday where they do baking and singing as well as the softplay

There is a mother & toddler group from 10am-12 noon at the Meals & Wheels centre every Monday and Friday. It is €3 per family and the mams get tea and the kiddies toast.

There is also a toddlers morning in the old St George's school on a Friday morning.

There is a gymboree class in the library on a Tuesday morning: http://www.playandmusic.ie/b2c/location/Dublin-North/Dublin-north.shtml#Balbriggan

Rugbytots is going to be starting soon: http://www.rugbytots.ie/ViewClasses.aspx

I don't drive either but I must say between all of the above I find plenty to do during the week