Fears for capacity of Kildare cemetery as council claims 'adequate for next 5/6 years'

Officials from Kildare County Council have agreed to meet with a local Fine Gael councillor at Laraghbryan Cemetery in Maynooth, Co Kildare, to determine the amount of burial space left on the grounds.

Cllr Tim Durkan tabled his motion at a meeting of Clane-Maynooth Municipal District on Friday, June 6 2025.

Cllr Durkan, who is concerned that burial space may be limited in Laraghbryan Cemetery, motioned “That the Council gives a timeline and completion date for the expansion of Laraghbryan Cemetery Maynooth.”

READ NEXT: Number of vehicles stopped at multi-agency checkpoints in Kildare

Speaking this week following the MD meeting, Cllr Durkan said: “I tabled the motion because I felt that we were running out of space in the cemetery, the columbarium wall is two-thirds full, with approximately 20% space for burials.

“We have land zoned, two hectares adjacent to the current cemetery.

“Given the process that it has to go into council ownership, it has to go through a Part 8, and then it has to be actually delivered as a cemetery in terms of walls and roadways, I think the timeframe between that...I don't think it's enough time and we could run out of space.”

Cllr Durkan said that resulting from his motion, council officials have agreed to meet the councillor and committee members on-site at the cemetery, to determine what burial space is currently remaining.

A report issued by the council noted that “there are no immediate plans to extend the cemetery at Laraghbryan, Maynooth”, and that “current figures indicate that capacity is deemed adequate for the next 5/6 years.”

The report further stated: “Laraghbryan also has a columbarium wall with spaces available. However, to ensure adequate burial space for the future, a suitable location that could accommodate an additional cemetery has been identified on a two-hectare site situated to the north of the existing cemetery at Laraghbryan on lands zoned ‘Community and Education’.”

Meanwhile, Cllr Durkan pointed out, a number of constituents – themselves reportedly concerned about the available space in the cemetery – have attempted to reserve a burial space, only to discover that this is not permitted.

Cllr Durkan says there is no other cemetery available for use in Maynooth, except for LadyChapel Cemetery, which he claims has not seen a burial in a number of years.

He said of the plans for the zoned land: “To deliver the Part 8 to design it will take a considerable amount of time, and then to actually physically deliver the infrastructural side of it will take a considerable amount of time.

“My fear is that with the amount of work we have to do, we might just not have the time to deliver it.

“I respect the report, I'm happy that the executive have agreed to come out and meet myself and a number of people from the committee, and we'll start to work forward, and it gives people an idea as to how much space is left, and how long we have to deliver a new cemetery.”