Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 28 Jan 1988

Vol. 377 No. 2

Adjournment Debate. - County Kildare Vocational School, Accommodation.

Mr. Durkan

I would like to thank you for affording me the opportunity of raising this issue on the Adjournment. In terms of the national Parliament this might be considered a parochial issue, but it is very near and dear to the hearts of the people in my constituency, particularly in the Prosperous area.

This matter has been ongoing for a considerable time, almost ten years. Two schools side by side, both VEC type schools, one in Clane and the other in Prosperous, require urgent extension and the provision of extra facilities. Agreement was reached with regard to the step by step process which should be followed in regard to the extension to the Prosperous school. While the Clane school was allowed to go ahead, some minor alterations had to be made to the design, etc, which caused delays in the preparations of the plan for the Prosperous school. It was always agreed that both schools should proceed simultaneously and that the catchment area should also be provided for.

However, the Clane school was completed in 1983 and is providing a very good service, but the Prosperous school is essentially in the same condition as it was then. The parents, teachers and students are obviously getting very impatient with the delays in providing extra facilities. I visited the school on a number of occasions, as did a number of politicians in the constituency and we were all horrified that students are in prefabricated accommodation which does not have sanitary facilities. This is obviously very unhealthy and parents are extremely concerned about the health of their children.

I know quite well that there are financial constraints within which the Minister must operate and that applies to all Governments. Nonetheless, this school, its parents, children and teachers have a long standing problem which, as has been agreed in principle, must be dealt with. I am sure that the Minister has in her Department repeated representations numbering well into the thousands from the various interest groups and politicians in County Kildare regarding this matter.

In more recent times, the situation has become particularly worrying in the sense that the Eastern Health Board reported on conditions there on 3 November 1987. Kildare Vocational Education Committee were informed of the result.

The report stated:

There are approximately 260 pupils attending the above school which consists of one school building and a number of prefab units. The main school building consists of 9 classrooms, general office, headmaster's office and male and female sanitary accommodation. This building is in satisfactory condition. However, hot water and soap are not provided at either the boys or girls sanitary accommodation. One towel is provided at the boys and girls toilets. This towel is only changed on a weekly basis.

Prefab accommodation consists of one triple prefab unit, 2 double prefab units, 4 single prefab units, one of which contains sanitary accommodation... the triple prefab unit is 2 years old, the remaining prefab units are 1970, are generally in a dilapidated state, with evidence of holed floors, broken window frames, rodent infestation. These units are unsuitable for use as classrooms and should be replaced without delay. All sanitary accommodation should be provided with running hot and cold water, soap and suitable means of drying...

There has been countless parliamentary questions, letters and acknowledgments, for which I am very grateful, but no final and fruitful reply. I hope to get the final and fruitful reply this evening which we so earnestly desire.

There is also another problem which needs to be borne in mind. When, as is the case here, two schools are developing side by side in adjoining catchment areas, where one school is newly equipped, well developed with all modern facilities and the other, although a good school, has none of these things, the logical progression is that one school will die. The fear is locally that the school in Prosperous, by virtue of failure to take action in relation to the extra accommodation, will literally die. Long before that happens, the morale of the teachers and students will be affected to such an extent that parents will not want to send their children there because, apart from the health reasons and the hazards of having their sons and daughters in unfit and unsanitary accommodation the morale of the staff will degenerate to such an extent that it would not be wise to send children to such a school. I am not saying it will happen in this case but that is the logical progression of what happens in these situations.

Maybe, in the light of yesterday's announcement, the Minister might have at her disposal a little more latitude whereby it might be possible for her to proceed with this project which runs to about £1.3 million.

Minister for Education (Mrs. O'Rourke)

I got £1.5 million for postprimary education.

Mr. Durkan

In all fairness, given the background to this case and the situation in regard to the patience shown by the parents and the teachers, but more especially and importantly the very poor standard of the accommodation that the children, parents and teachers have to put up with, a special effort should be made to do something about this school in the very near future. If this is not done the scenario will develop as I have outlined which would be extremely unfortunate for an area that has given a very high standard of VEC education to a rural area over a long number of years. If anything should happen to interfere with that, by way of further delay in regard to the provision of the facilities required, I am afraid that all politicians will have to take the blame.

I do not want to delay the House unnecessarily. I mentioned that every politician must have a file on this issue and I said that I had many acknowledgements. The Minister does not sound hopeful from the noises she has just made——

Mrs. O'Rourke

I hope I did not make noises.

An Leas-Cheann Comhairle

It was just a mild interjection.

Mrs. O'Rourke

It is not nice to say that I made noises.

Mr. Durkan

Well, I should have said indications. I would not like to pre-empt anything which the Minister might say but I am trying to encourage her to go down the road in a positive fashion and to make a response to this issue.

I also wish to quote from a letter from the Eastern Health Board to the outgoing chief executive officer of Kildare Vocational Office which was attached to the letter from which I previously quoted. It states:

Dear Mr. Cummins,

Attached is the environmental Health Officers report on Prosperous Vocational School. The pre-fab structures are now totally unsuitable for use as classrooms; their continuing use is likely to have an adverse effect on the health of both pupils and staff. This temporary accommodation needs to be urgently replaced by a proper extension to the main building — an extension providing adequate and proper classroom facilities and adequate toilet accommodation.

That is probably the strongest language I have yet seen coming from one statutory body to another — and rightly so — in the sense that the health board are obviously concerned about the health of the students attending that school and about the staff. Having said all that, I am fully aware of the fact that the Minister has read the file on this case and must know the degree of feeling there is in relation to the matter locally. I know there are other compelling areas of responsibility and issues on which the Minister will be called upon to provide money but she has an opportunity at this time of the year to give some indication as to what is likely to happen in Prosperous.

The Minister has an opportunity at this time of the year to give some indication as to what is likely to happen in the Prosperous case. In fairness to the parents and to the teachers it behoves us all to tackle that problem and face it now and let the parents know that something is going to be done about it either next month, or in the next six months or at some time in the reasonably near future. We need to identify the time involved. I will quote from a letter written by the chairperson of the parents association on 3 July 1987. It states as follows:

For almost a decade we have waited with the utmost patience for the extension to our school to materialise and no one felt offended so now we feel that no one can take offence if we show our impatience.

We have watched and waited while stages normally taking weeks took months, some stages, took almost a year and still we have no building. Successive Ministers wrote to us as far, back as 1981 promising to build our school on a "step by step, brick by brick" basis with the Community School in Clane.

That is the school I referred to earlier:

That building was completed in '83 — ours has not started. We have had promises from all concerned that our school would not be allowed to suffer because of the delay but since a large and important part of the school is its pupils, our children, at least that part has been allowed to suffer — cold, wet, dismal surroundings, lack of necessary equipment, now standard in all new schools, are just a few of the problems and we call for an end to such unfair treatment of our children.

The letter goes on to deal with a recent meeting which took place. I know that that is true because I have seen the replies from the Minister and from previous Ministers.

Minister for Education (Mrs. O'Rourke)

Can the Deputy tell us what happened between 1983 and 1987?

Mr. Durkan

I could tell the Minister also that a considerable amount happened prior to 1983 and prior to 1981. I was hoping that the Minister would not press me into telling her that.

An Leas-Cheann Comhairle

The Deputy will not have time to refer to those years.

Mr. Durkan

I would love to take a trip down that lane. I think the Minister knows that as well. I hope the Minister's reply will not entail a resumé of what took place between 1983 and 1987. I would prefer that the Minister's reply would entail a résumé of what the Minister hopes will take place between now and the end of 1988.

Mrs. O'Rourke

Thank you, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle. I want to apologise to your good self and to Deputy Durkan for my half minute delay in entering the Chamber but you were faced by the highest man in the land in my absence.

An Leas-Cheann Comhairle

With respect that was through the fault of the House. The House rose 15 minutes earlier than had been intended.

Mrs. O'Rourke

I broke a very important appointment to be here with the Deputy.

Mr. Durkan

I though it was a measure of the importance of the issue that the Taoiseach was actually here.

Mrs. O'Rourke

He was only there waiting for me. I apologise to all concerned. It is necessary for me, without wishing to sound acrimonious, as the Deputy introduced the year 1983 and the building of Clane and Prosperous schools step by step and brick by brick, to point our that in the years 1983 to 1987 there was another Government in this House and another Government Minister in the Department of Education. The Deputy said he did not wish me to refer to it but I cannot possibly be like a fairy godmother who comes at the end of four years of inactivity on this particular project and then produce the goods.

Mr. Durkan

I mentioned 1981 as well.

Mrs. O'Rourke

It may suit the Deputy to forget what happened in the four years from 1983 to 1987 but I would like to point out that very little happened with regard to Prosperous school. There were various stages of planning but as the chairperson of the parents' committee said, each stage of planning which should have taken weeks took months. That is pointed out in the letter which the Deputy read out so movingly here this afternoon. With regard to Prosperous vocational school the Deputy is aware that as part of the Government's Programme for National Recovery we decided to cut back on capital projects. The second level capital projects provision, were it all to be realised, would mean an expenditure of £325 million, that is if one were to spend the money on all the stages of second-level projects which are at various stages of planning.

To put the matter in context Deputy Durkan mentioned that the Minister for Finance yesterday announced a small increase in the capital allocation which would mean approximately £2.5 million for second-level schools and Prosperous accounts for one half of that. There are over 400 such schools throughout the country of which about 40 to 50 would be in very bad circumstances. I am putting the matter in context because the Deputy is one of about 166 people who think that £2.6 million will go all over the country. I appreciate very much the serious situation regarding Prosperous and anything I have said heretofore does not take from it. I have read the file. I have read particular letters from the parents. I was not available one day to meet a deputation which came here but I had arrangements made that they were met, their literature was received and their case was heard very clearly. I am aware that there is a need for a new school in Prosperous. The Deputy has told me of the condition of the present prefabs. I am aware that over the years from 1981 to 1983 and through to 1987 and 1988 they have deteriorated as is the way of prefabs. The Deputy is aware that the estimated cost of designing, building, furnishing and equipping will be £1.3 million. The school envisages nine general classrooms, a drawingroom, science and laboratory room, metalwork room, library, physical education room and ancillary accommodation. The project has now reached the stage where the preliminary tender report has been received and has been examined in my Department. The next step would be, in the normal course of events, the final tender report. There are other projects in a similar position.

The small bonus which we got yesterday would build two very modest schools throughout the country out of a total of more than 400. I should like to say to Deputy Durkan and to Deputy Power, who is chairperson of Kildare VEC, and my other colleague, Deputy McCreevy that they have made Trojan efforts in bringing this school to my attention since I came to office. I intend to keep in touch with the Deputy and with my other two colleagues as the case develops. I am not in a position to say anything more at present. I appreciate the fact that the Deputy has on the tenth occasion managed, as he said this morning, to raise the matter in the Dáil. I, for my part, undertake to keep in touch with the Deputy regarding developments.

The Dáil adjourned at 5.10 p.m. until 2.30 p.m. on Tuesday, 2 February 1988.