I thank the Chair for allowing me to raise this matter on the Adjournment. There are a number of Clare schools which are in great need of capital funding. INTO representatives recently pointed out that there are at least five schools which could be described as nothing less than a disgrace and which are in need of immediate attention.
I have raised the matter of Kilmurry national school on a number of occasions. I am again seeking support from the Department which has received the sketch plans. The board of management wishes to send a deputation to the Minister to secure a commitment that capital funds will be provided next year. A sum of £80,000 is required to enable the school maintain its high standards with the assistance of teachers, students and the local community.
Tumagraney national school is also experiencing problems. On 4 August 1994 the board of management received a letter from the Department in which it stated that a grant of 85 per cent was available to upgrade sanitary facilities at the school which were deemed to be inadequate. It has been in touch with the Department on a number of occasions since then. On 3 February it received what it considered to be a most disappointing response from the Department which stated that it was not in a position to increase the level of funding towards the cost of the project.
Kilkee primary school likewise is experiencing problems. It is awaiting the green light to allow the project to go to tender. According to one of its teachers, in recent days there was a pool of water in one of the classrooms due to the bad weather in the west. As well as being damp, there are no facilities for teachers, no indoor toilet facilities and no drinking water supply.
The board of management, teachers, students and parents are extremely frustrated at the lack of action on the part of the Minister. It is their hope that she will regard the matter as urgent. The local contribution has been collected.
The new building for Gaelscoil Mhichíl Cíosóg in Ennis is badly needed. The school has approximately 200 children and seven teachers in prefabs on the Gort road at Cois na hAbhna. For some years the board of management has been working to secure a new building. Further action is not required before inviting tenders to build the new school on land purchased by the Department near St. Claire's school. The project was included on the list of schools to be included in the 1997 primary school capital budget published in The Irish Times last year. This was in accord with the repeated indications from the Department. The project is not included, however, on the more recent formal list.
While the parents have spent in the region of £10,000 to maintain the school buildings in their present condition, it is not worth spending any more money on them. They are considered to be highly dangerous, because of cramped conditions, and genuinely unsafe. As the Minister is aware, the teachers have decided to go on a one day strike on Monday, 24 February to draw attention to the matter. A public meeting held on Tuesday, 11 February supported them fully and agreed to press for three demands, namely, that the gaelscoil be included in the 1997 primary school capital programme, that tenders be invited immediately and that construction commence before 31 May.
Knockanean national school is seeking funding for an extension but has been ignored to date by the Department. Inis Cealtra national school is experiencing similar problems.
Even at this late stage I hope the Minister will provide some practical help and not express pious platitudes. Following a review of the primary school capital programme I hope she will be in a position to make further announcements before the summer break.
