Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 23 Oct 2002

Vol. 556 No. 1

Adjournment Debate. - Schools Building Projects.

Mr. O'Connor

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for allowing me the opportunity to raise this matter. I welcome the Minister of State at the Department of Education and Science, Deputy de Valera. There is irony in the fact that the Minister represented my constituency a number of years ago. She may not wish me to say when, but it was a long time ago when we were both much younger. I am glad there are parents from the parents association of St. Killian's in the gallery tonight. There are also ladies from the Greenhills step dancing group who will remember the Minister of State with great affection.

This is a serious and important issue for my constituency which I decided to raise on the Adjournment because of my frustration on behalf of the parents, pupils, teachers and everyone concerned with the community in Castleview and Kingswood. There are two schools involved. St. Killian's national school is in the parish of Kingswood Heights, Tallaght, where there is a community of 1,600 houses. St. Killian's school was established in 1979 in that new parish. Due to the pressure of numbers, St. Killian's senior school was built in 1986. The senior school has catered for more than 2,400 children in this time. It was housed in a temporary building which had classrooms only and no additional facilities. The school has no hall and cannot cater for extra-curricular or school activities, including arts, crafts and sports. It has no facilities to cater for the attendance of parents in the school and it has no facilities for the disabled, which is very significant in this day and age. There is an asbestos roof on the junior school. This upsets many people in the parish and in Tallaght and clearly needs attention. Many people have said to me that the senior school is literally falling to pieces.

In moving this Adjournment Debate I stress to the House and the Minster for Education and Science the needs of this parish and the parents who have asked me to do this. I acknowledge the interest the Minister has shown in the case when I have approached him on a number of occasions. I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy de Valera's presence here tonight. We need to get a positive go ahead for the works in this school. People will talk about what was said and done before the election but, as public representative of Kingswood in recent years and as a new Dáil Deputy, I had a firm conviction that the information coming from the Department of Education and Science told us that these works were going ahead and that is what I told people on the doorsteps. I made no promises but I told them that I have a definite commitment to this school and parish and that I would do all I could to represent their needs to the Minister and the Department and that is what I am doing. I have continued to do so in the 160 days since I became a TD and I will continue to do so, formally and informally and when I have the opportunity to address the House, I will do so.

I hope the Minister understands this is a serious issue. The Minister of State will have in her brief the information about the works that are needed. Apart from the asbestos roof, which needs to be emphasised, the security fences and other works which are recommended and need to be undertaken have a spin off effect as far as the parish is concerned. The school is suffering, as do many others, from anti-social behaviour and other related problems. I ask the Minister of State to examine the file and communicate my message to the Minister that the works are needed. I do not think the Department is querying that but it is a matter of getting the go ahead, so we can say to the good parents of these pupils in the Castleview schools that these works will go ahead. I ask the Minister of State not only to respond to me tonight but also, within the Department, to initiate a process tomorrow where this whole process is speeded up. It needs to be expedited so we can say when the Estimates are being put to bed that these works will go ahead.

Minister of State at the Department of Education and Science (Miss de Valera)

I thank the Deputy for his kind words at the outset of the debate this evening. I am pleased that the Deputy is one of the TDs for the area he represents and am sure he will do his job well. In the execution of his job, he has brought this matter to the attention of the Minister for Education and Science, Deputy Dempsey, and myself. I am glad he has given me the opportunity of outlining to the House our Department's current position regarding the proposed refurbishment project at St. Killian's junior and senior national schools, Castleview, Tallaght.

At present, St. Killian's junior school has a staffing level of a principal, 13 mainstream class teachers, a learning support teacher, two resource teachers and a temporary language support teacher. The enrolment at 30 September 2002 was 333 pupils. St. Killian's senior school has a principal, 14 mainstream class teachers, a learning support teacher, a resource teacher and a temporary language support teacher. The enrolment at this school at 30 September 2002 was 358 pupils.

The junior school's present facilities consist of 16 classrooms, a general purpose room and limited ancillary accommodation. The senior school has 14 classrooms and some limited ancillary accommodation. A project to refurbish the schools and provide additional ancillary accommodation is currently at an advanced stage of planning.

Our Department has an extensive primary school building programme for 2002 under way, details of which, including a list of 400 major building projects in architectural planning, are available on our website: www.education.ie. Decisions on projects proceeding to tender and construction are taken in light of the annual allocation for primary school buildings, the financial commitments to be met and the priority to be afforded to individual projects.

Later this year when a financial allocation has been made for the primary school building programme in the 2003 Estimates, the Minister for Education and Science will frame a further comprehensive programme of works that will proceed to construction and the proposed building project at St. Killian's junior and senior schools will be one of those considered for inclusion in that programme.

Finally, our Department is fully committed to the provision of improved accommodation at St. Killian's junior and senior schools and I wish to thank the Deputy again for giving me the opportunity of outlining the current position to the House. I assure the Deputy that I will pass on his genuine concerns regarding these schools to the Minister for Education and Science tomorrow.

An Ceann Comhairle

Deputy Neville has given me notice of his intention to raise the matter of the construction of a new school at St. Nicholas' primary school in Adare, County Limerick.

Mr. Neville

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for the opportunity to raise the building of a new school at St. Nicholas' primary school in Adare, County Limerick.

In June 1999, the then Minister for Education, Deputy Martin, was invited by the board of management of St. Nicholas' primary school to visit the school in Adare. At the time of the Minister's visit, the school had a two teacher schoolhouse in the Augustinian abbey which dates to the 16th century. The school was to become a three teacher school that September due to increased enrolment. The board of management had already spent a number of years investigating the possibility of converting the adjoining building into a schoolhouse.

As this is an historic and listed building and an archaeological site, they could not do anything with the original building. Following an inspection of the school and the former schoolhouse by the Minister and his officials, he announced that it would not make financial or educational sense to furnish the building. He informed the board that a new school building should be built. The board proceeded with acquiring the adjoining land as instructed by the Minister.

The school building itself is over 600 years old. Old stone walls are damp and inappropriate as classrooms. Fungal growth is present on some walls. Ventilation is poor as the main windows cannot be left open for safety reasons. The constant dampness affects pupils with asthma. Dehumidification has been attempted numerous times over the years but due to the large air space and high ceilings, it was never effective. The hall and toilet areas are tiled and, because of the high relative humidity and continuous dampness, this area is slippery and a continuous hazard despite repeated attempts to make it safe. Skylights in the classroom roof areas constantly leak causing pupils to get wet while working in class. The heating system is antiquated, inefficient and totally ineffective so portable heaters must be brought into classrooms during the winter.

Access to the classrooms is by means of 20 stone steps which are a continuous hazard so the school cannot enrol a child with a physical disability because these steps are slippery in wet weather. The toilet facilities in the main building are insufficient for the number of pupils – there are only two toilets for the girls and one cubicle and a number of urinals for the boys. Male and female staff must use the same toilets as the children. There is no water connection to the classrooms and the only water, aside from the toilets, is in the small kitchen area which is used as a classroom by the learning support teacher. The school does not have a staff room, staff toilet or office. The secretary works from a stage area in the senior classroom. There is no room in which parents may meet teachers. Infant classes are held in a portakabin at the rear of the building. This classroom is separated from the rest of the school. The toilets are outside, so pupils have to leave the building to go to the toilet and are unsupervised during this time.

The site is an historic heritage site and attracts a large number of tourists all year round but, in particular, between April and October. Tourists wander around during the day and have access to some of the areas where the children assemble, despite efforts on the part of the school to restrict entry. There is a risk from extra car traffic at the area around the entrance to the school and, despite direction signs, some tourists attempt to use the portaloos which are used by the infant pupils. When tourists enter the cloister area which is under part of the school building they can be heard from the classroom. The school is in close proximity to the tidal area of the River Maigue and there is an on-going problem with rats and the school authorities have to lay rat poison to protect it from them. As the sewage system is old, there are on-going problems, especially in wet weather when the sewage backs up and oozes through some of the manholes in the playground. This area had to be closed off twice in the past school year until it was cleaned up.

As is clear, the school has serious problems. I visited the school during the summer and spoke with the chairman of the board of management, Reverend Rachel Lewis to whom I pay tribute as well as the principal, Margaret Beckinden, her staff and all involved. There is urgent need for a new school in the area. It is three miles from where I live so I know the area, the school and its concerns intimately. I ask the Minister to respond positively.

Miss de Valera

I am glad the Deputy has raised this issue this evening because it gives the Department an opportunity to highlight the current position regarding the application for a new school for St. Nicholas primary school. At present, St. Nicholas primary school has a staffing level of a principal, two mainstream class teachers and a shared learning support teacher, not school based. The enrolment at 30 September 2002 was 71. The school's facilities consist of two classrooms, a portakabin for the third teacher and a portakabin for the resource and remedial teacher.

The Department has an extensive primary school building programme under way at present and this includes a large number of projects at various stages of architectural planning, details of which are available on our Department's website at www.education.ie. Decisions on additional projects proceeding to architectural planning are taken in the light of the annual allocation for capital projects, the financial commitments to be met and the priority to be afforded to individual projects. The programme for 2002 is in place and the schools concerned have been notified.

Later this year, when a financial allocation has been made for the primary school building programme in the 2003 Estimates, the Minister for Education and Science, Deputy Dempsey, will be framing a further comprehensive programme of works. This will involve putting more projects into architectural planning. The needs of St. Nicholas primary school will be considered at that time.

In the meantime, the school's board of management should ensure that essential health and safety issues at the school are attended to. They should therefore continue to use the devolved grant for minor works and if the cost of any works of an emergency nature exceeds the amount available under the devolved grant, they may apply to the Department's building unit for grant aid.

The Department is fully committed to the provision of improved accommodation at St. Nicholas primary school. I thank the Deputy again for giving me the opportunity of outlining the current position to the House.