'Just rollercoasting' - Overwhelming list of issues face new Laois safety group

The LCSP is examining a broad spectrum of issues, from e-scooters to mental health

Published 8th Sep 2026, 20:00 BST Laois senior Gardaí and Laois County Council representatives and staff with some of the members of the Laois Local Community Safety Partnership committee. Photo: Paul Dargan. The LCSP is examining a broad spectrum of issues, from e-scooters to mental health Sign up to our Laois Live newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know you can manage your profile, and explore all of the available newsletters from Laois Live within your account.

The Laois Local Community Safety Partnership (LCSP) held their first open meeting this Tuesday, September 8, with a huge number of issues raised across many different areas.

The function of the group is to provide a forum where communities in Laois can voice their concerns around local safety issues. However, this was just the first public meeting the group held since it was established in 2025.

The LCSP meets six times a year to discuss crime and safety issues in the county. Its first meeting was in January of this year.

Local members of An Garda Síochána are involved in the group as well as some government agencies like the HSE and Tusla, some local councillors, groups involved with domestic violence services, Muintir na Tíre, the LOETB, and members of the community.

The LCSP is funded by the Department of Justice and the group has applied for other avenues of funding such as the Community Investment Fund.

This initiative was rolled out across Ireland as a way of replacing the previous Joint Policing Committees. The new model aims to create a more inclusive and community-driven approach to policing.

Unlike the Joint Policing Committee, the LCSP does not include TDs and local media is also excluded from meetings. The LCSP meets in private except for one meeting a year, which took place on September 8 at Laois County Council .

Only a small number of the public attended the meeting, despite it being the first time the community was invited to attend.

The meeting began with tributes to the late Liam O’Neill who acted as the Chairperson of the group since it was established at the end of last year. A new chairperson has yet to be appointed for the LCSP.

The Vice Chairperson and local Portlaoise Councillor, Caroline Dwane Stanley, along with Coordinator and Administrator Sinead Williams provided an overview of the group and its purpose.

Big upgrade planned at Laois town’s business park The LCSP can have up to 30 members and so far there are 26, with the vacant spaces due to be discussed at the next meeting on December 7.

Explaining the difference between the new LCSP and the former JPC, Ms Brennan said: “Rather than an agenda set by the committee, we’re taking a community approach. It’s what the local people tell us that matters and this will feed into our Local Safety Plan for Laois, something that is tailored by the local community.”

This Local Safety Plan is hoped to be published by January 2027. Until then, the LCSP has formed a working plan to guide the group.

There has been quite an extensive and broad range of issues raised by committee members so far, including anti social behaviour, road safety, drugs, education, domestic violence, community service, volunteerism, youth outlets and spaces, dog control, safety of minority communities, hate crimes and incidents, mental health, suicide and accessibility.

Speaking at the meeting, Cllr Dwane Stanley noted: “While we were doing this working plan, there wasn’t a meeting that went by that a new priority didn’t come forward. We started off with one issue which was drugs.

“The next thing we had the whole issue around domestic abuse, with the killings of some women in our community and country. Meeting after meeting, it was just rollercoasting. We have certainly touched on all these issues and hopefully when we have our strategic plan in place we can focus more on these.”

Many issues were raised during the meeting by local councillors on the committee and two Laois TDs, Brian Stanley and Willie Aird, who were also welcomed to the meeting for the first time.

Issues around the safe and legal use of e-scooters as well as the enforcement of the new legislation was high on the agenda of the councillors and TDs.

Representing An Garda Síochána, Superintendent Brian Farrell responded: “I do have a lot of information but I don’t think this is the forum here today. The issue of e-scooters has been raised a couple of times. As I said in relation to drugs policing and roads policing, obviously we have a massive role in enforcement. We take that role very seriously.

“We have run a number of operations in Laois where a large number of e-scooters were seized and a number of tickets given out. I don’t have figures.”

The Superintendent said that when it comes to stopping someone on an e-scooter, gardaí cannot chase down e-scooters in case there is a crash, as he said “we’ve seen all that in relation to cars going the wrong way down the motorway.”

Instead, gardaí have actually run “covert operations”, as Superintendent Farrell put it, where they would stop e-scooter drivers when in plain clothes.

With the Strategic Plan yet to be published, the LCSP has encouraged members of the public to complete its Laois Community Safety Survey. These responses will inform the priorities, actions, and long-term vision for community safety in Laois.