I thank the Ceann Comhairle for giving me the opportunity to raise this matter, the position of Kilfinane primary school, roll No. 13026P, in County Limerick. I raised this matter on the Adjournment 11 months ago but it is necessary to raise it again since no progress has been made.
It was made clear in an Irish National Teachers' Organisation report that facilities in the school are unsatisfactory and have been for years. The school is the base for a remedial teacher who is shared among five schools. Her classroom – if one could call it that – is also used as a staff room, library, store room and office. It is also used by a special needs teacher, visiting doctors and nurses and for parent/teacher meetings. The resultant disruption is continuous and not conducive to a learning atmosphere. It renders the teacher's job particularly difficult.
Four of the classrooms are so small that it is virtually impossible to implement the old curriculum, let alone the revised one. There are no indoor PE facilities, no GP room and no place for children to leave their gear for outdoor games. The staff are enthusiastic to encourage the use of computers but with so little space it is extremely difficult. Toilet facilities for staff are inadequate while the outdoor facilities for children are Dickensian. I doubt that the school building would pass examination by a health and safety authority.
It is more than three years since representations were first made regarding improvements to the school. The feasibility study carried out clearly shows that a new building is the only viable option. The board of management has earmarked one or two possible sites for the new building. At present, the most prestigious sites in this area are fetching relatively conservative prices. This is just beginning to change. If the go-ahead is given for a new building, it would be cheaper to proceed sooner rather than later.
The staff of the school want what is best for the children of the parish. They also need practical working conditions to enable them to carry out their professional duties to the best of their abilities. They have found themselves frustrated over the years. They have been contacted by the local media when word leaked out that they were seeking some improvements.
The school is a six teacher rural school with a shared remedial teacher and about 160 pupils attend the school. In January 1998, the board of management applied to the Department of Education and Science for a grant to carry out major structural works and, in 1999, it received a reply stating that, due to restricted site size and falling enrolment trends, classroom extension and conversion would not proceed. A grant was provided for outdoor toilets and a staff room was sanctioned. This was unacceptable and it is now accepted by everyone in the area that a replacement is required.
The existing building dates back to 1909 and the school is housed in a converted church. It consists of six small classrooms, three of which are only 35 square metres. There is a tiny ancillary room, which is used as a library, and a tiny office and cloakroom. There is also a small central area which can be accessed from the classrooms. There is no staff room and the toilet blocks are situated outdoors. The playing space outdoors is very limited. In addition, three of the classrooms are seven metres by five metres and house classes between 25 and 30 pupils. The partitions between the classrooms are wafer thin, consisting of narrow timber boards or glass, and fail to be soundproof which causes difficulties for teaching and learning. The timber floors have begun to sag in many areas. Due to the building design, ceilings are very high and temperature extremes are common. There is evidence of dry rot and many of the windows can no longer be opened, leading to a lack of adequate ventilation. The playing space is also inadequate for the pupils and drinking water is not available to them. Sinks are provided in only three of the rooms. There is no staff room proper library, principal's office or remedial teacher work base. There is also occasionally evidence of rodent infestation. The Minister should immediately examine the provision of a new school.
