It is usual to begin by thanking the Ceann Comhairle for the opportunity to raise an item on the Adjournment. On this occasion, a Cheann Comhairle, I sincerely thank you for allowing me to raise this matter because of the long list from which you had to choose.
St. Edward's national school, Forthill, Sligo, has 230 pupils and nine teachers, including the principal, a remedial teacher and a resource teacher. The school building is no longer of a standard acceptable for the purpose of learning or of teaching. Today it could be seen at its worst with the rain water coming down along the walls following the downpour of the past few days. The toilets are outdated, the corridors have been designated "very dangerous" in an IIRS report, the windows are partly rotten, the heating is deficient and the playground inadequate. These are just some of the problems but the unsuitability of the building is not in dispute and the Department of Education and the Minister for Education accepted that long ago.
Since the mid-seventies negotiations have been taking place with the Department of Education for a new school situated in the Forthill area and with success — on paper. In April 1987 the Department agreed to grant-aid the provision of a new school located at Ballytivnan to cater for the children in the Forthill and Ballytivnan areas. In February 1988 outline planning permission was received but then there seemed to be an indication that the Department were reconsidering their agreement to build. An election intervened — fortunately perhaps — and on 13 July 1989 a fax was received from — of all places — Fianna Fáil headquarters with the following message:
The Minister for Education, Mrs. Mary O'Rourke, has now agreed for provision of essential classroom accommodation to replace St. Edward's National School, Forthill, Sligo. The new school will be situated in Ballytivnan and will consist of eight new classrooms. The Minister has further agreed on the planning of the project to proceed immediately. The Minister has also said that there will be no undue delay within the Department in the planning and the provision of the school.
In August 1989 the Department finally gave the message everyone wanted, the building of the school was to start in the summer of 1990.
Therefore, in April 1987 a new school was officially sanctioned, in July 1989 we were told there would be a new St. Edward's with no undue delay and in August of the same year we were told that the building would start in the summer of 1990. What happened? St. Edward's has not yet got from the Department of Education the sketch plans to enable them to apply for full planning permission. Is it any wonder that among the parents, pupils, teachers, board of management and local residents there is disillusionment, frustration and outright anger at what they regard as little better than deception from Dublin? Is it any wonder that St. Edward's parents' association, with virtually 100 per cent backing, decided to withdraw their children from the school for one day in protest? That protest was to have taken place on 12 March but it has now been postponed for two months and, if the Department of Education have not delivered the sketch plans to Sligo in the meantime, they will strike on 15 May.
There was full agreement on the site of the new school and there will be no problem of planning. Repeatedly, from 1987 onwards, the Minister and the Department said that they will build; what everyone involved now wants to know from the Minister is very stark and simple, when will the building work commence on site? The preliminary processes can be drawn out or done at high speed, it is all up to the Minister. Anything other than a firm date for the start of work on the school, which the Minister undertook to build in 1989 with no undue delay, will not wash at St. Edward's.
