Tá mé buíoch díot, a Cheann Comhairle, as ucht deis a thabh-airt dom an cheist thábhachtach seo a árdú sa Dáil anocht, i dtaobh scoil i mo dháilcheantar féin. Thank you, a Cheann Comhairle, for granting me permission to raise this matter. I would not have asked the Minister to attend tonight if other attempts to resolve the matter had not failed. The situation obtaining in Scoil Chaitríona is quite extraordinary. This is a national school in Renmore in Galway for which the Department has refused to sanction the appointment of a caretaker. Since the previous caretaker resigned from the post the school manager and some of the staff have been obliged to carry out maintenance work, a situation that is most unsatisfactory.
The Department has taken the stand that there are two schools involved. There is a junior school with 432 pupils and a senior school with 463 pupils. There are 34 teachers on the staff, with two principals and two boards of management. Both schools are built on common ground, with just one school building, and both the junior and senior classes commenced on the same day. The schools share a secretary whose salary is paid by the Department. There is a common ESB account and a common boiler house that heats water for the central heating system throughout the building. I cannot understand why the Department is insisting that there are two schools involved.
If there were an additional 68 pupils in the junior school and an additional 37 pupils in the senior school the Department would sanction the appointment of a caretaker for each school. With an increase of 105 pupils the Department would be quite happy to sanction the appointment of two caretakers for this one building, but it will not sanction the appointment of even one cartaker for a school with an attendance of 900 pupils. This is a matter of grave concern to the school management. I appeal to the Minister to apply common sense in this case. I hope in his reply he will indicate a willingness to sanction the appointment of a caretaker.
In my area in Galway city there are two schools, a boys' and a girls' school which are 500 or 600 yards apart. There is one caretaker, who was made permanent last year, with responsibility for both buildings. These two schools have a staff of only 20 teachers. In Scoil Naomh Phroinsias, a new school in Headford Road, Galway, with an attendance of 700 pupils, there is a caretaker and a secretary whose salaries are paid by the Department. Scoil Chaitríona is unique in that it has taken responsibility for the physicially handicapped class which was transferred from Merlin Park Hospital, with no assistance from the Department. About £6,000 has already been spent on the school from parish funds. This is the only school outside Dublin with a language impaired unit and therefore there are extra costs involved.
The condition of this school is deteriorating. Most of the caretaking work, such as cutting the grass, is done by the manager, but there are many tasks which he cannot do such as painting, repair work and plumbing. If any item of furniture is broken it cannot be repaired and replacement is very costly. The windows in the school need special attention and are very expensive to replace. The previous caretaker was able to replace small panes of glass for £7 but now a glazier has to be employed at a cost of £32. It now costs £145 to replace the large windows which were previously repaired by the caretaker for £40. Recently 16 classes were denied physical education because the gym was flooded and there was no caretaker on hand to repair the damage. Whenever there is a breakdown in the school, whether it be in the boiler, the roof, the windows or furniture, there is nobody to carry out the repairs and contractors have to be employed at great expense to the parish.
I cannot understand the Department's stance on this matter. I am raising it in the hope that the Minister will concede that a mistake has been made and will agree to sanction the appointment of a caretaker.
