I thank the Chair for the opportunity to discuss the extremely important issue of the appalling conditions the children and staff of the Cork National School Project have to endure, and the need for the immediate construction of an extension to dramatically improve the school.
The present condition of the school constitutes an emergency and justifies the immediate provision of funding to facilitate the requested extension by reference to criteria announced by the Minister recently in the Dáil when she stated that there were three categories which allowed for immediate provision of funding and on which she based her allocation of funding for particular school projects. She said that those on an emergency basis got priority. By any analysis, this school is such an emergency.
The lack of proper sanitation facilities is a scandal and the Minister stands condemned for her failure to act. The school medical officer, who is the medical officer for the Southern Health Board area, has written a report on the health implications for children attending the school. He pointed out that the number of toilet cubicles available to the school is seven when the minimum requirement of a school of its size is 16. There are only two cubicles which are suitable for use by infants. At present the number of infant children using these facilities is 69. The medical officer believes that the children are exposed to several health risks. He stated that there is a definite possibility of an infectious disease, such as salmonella or hepatitis A occurring, and that the overcrowding increases the risk of injury to children. This report by the medical officer was written on 6 April 1996. It baffles me that the Minister could be in possession of such a letter for so long without taking action. Such negligence and indifference are nothing short of disgraceful.
Overall there are 270 children attending the school. In addition to the lack of proper sanitation facilities there is an acute and chronic lack of space. There is no staff room. The principal's office, which is 12 feet by nine feet, serves as a staff and meeting room. There is no room for the resource teacher. There is a need for a multi-purpose hall and additional classrooms, appropriate secretarial space and an appropriate office for the principal. The estimated cost of the extension, which would provide adequate sanitary facilities, a staff room and principal's office, is £80,000, a relatively insignificant amount compared with other projects that have already been sanctioned.
The White Paper on Education is rich in rhetoric on multi-denominational education, but the record of this Minister in supporting multi-denominational schools has been mean-spirited. We were all shocked by the ongoing neglect of Crumlin multi-denominational national school and the failure of the Department to provide suitable accommodation for it. The Cork National School Project was the first multi-denominational national school in Munster when it opened in 1987, having received sanction from the Minister for Education at the time, Deputy Mary O'Rourke. Since then it has occupied six temporary premises before moving to its present location in 1994. From October 1994 onwards the school has sought this modest extension and has been in ongoing correspondence with the Department but to no avail. Maybe the imminence of a general election will bring a change of heart and some compassion on the part of the Minister.
