Vol. 421 No. 4
182 Mr. Garland asked the Minister for Education the reason, with regard to repeated representations from both St. Joseph's School for Deaf Boys, Cabra, Dublin 7, and from Deputy Garland, he has failed to meet with the school principal and has not replied to Deputy Garland's many letters apart from standard acknowledgments.
I can assure the Deputy that the issues raised both by himself and by the school in question are receiving active attention in my Department in the context of the current review being conducted of the school's operation.
In this connection, I have arranged for my officials to meet representatives from St. Joseph's at an early date.
I should point out that my Department's ongoing commitment to the school in question is well illustrated by the fact that, since 1990, equipment for practical subjects, valued at approximately £32,000, has been installed in the school. Also, following recent communications with my Department, audiological equipment costing £13,000 for two classrooms will be provided in the new school year.
In addition, pending the outcome of the review referred to, my Department has allowed St. Joseph's to maintain its staff at a level well in excess of that warranted by the official pupil teacher ratios.
As already indicated to the Deputy, the issues raised are of a most complex nature. They are taking longer than anticipated to resolve and to date I have had no progress of substance to report. In the circumstances, I thought it prudent to await the outcome of the review before communicating further with the Deputy.
