I have tabled this matter for discussion on six or seven occasions clearly showing the seriousness of the situation at Raheen national school over the past ten years.
Due to expanding numbers a secondhand pre-fab was purchased to accommodate a fourth teacher. This was to be a temporary arrangement, but ten years later the same teacher is still trying to educate pupils in that structure. At present, there are five holes in the floor and the exterior door is hanging off while two of the outside panels are damaged beyond repair. There are no toilet facilities in the pre-fab and the grossly inadequate toilet facilities are situated in the original school building, which is separate.
The original school, part of which has a flat roof, suffers from chronic damp, as indeed does the pre-fab. The wiring and plumbing is inadequate throughout. In addition, the windows are rotten and coupled with inadequate lighting and heating makes the school unsuitable and, indeed, dangerous. Now the school is rat infested. Everything I have said is attested to in a report from the health board's environmental health officer which was submitted to the Minister last year.
Raheen national school needs a proper extension and refurbishment programme immediately. The local community are not prepared to patch up or stand for this situation any longer. I pay tribute to the local community who at the drop of a hat were prepared to do their utmost to repair holes, replace chutes, slates and so on. However, their frustration and anger has been worsened by the insulting disregard of the Department of Education and in representing the community on this matter I have come to share their anger. Repeated requests for a meeting with the Minister have been refused. Representations from my office have been ignored. When dealing with Civil Service channels was no longer of any avail, repeated telephone calls were made to the Minister's programme manager over three weeks and they failed to elicit even the courtesy of a reply until today. A further reply promised this afternoon did not materialise. Conversations between people in my office and the officials responsible in the Department yielded nothing but gross offence.