Ba mhaith liom ar dtús báire mo bhuíochas a ghabháil leis an Cheann Chomhairle as cead a thabhairt dom an cheist seo a árdú anocht. My original motion on the Adjournment dealt with the health and safety aspects of school furniture vis-à-vis back problems caused by bad chair design as well as the problem in my constituency where Swords Educate Together national school has had to operate to date with furniture handed down from other schools throughout the country. The Department did not provide any furniture for the school, thereby leaving 60 children with the prospect of having no school furniture in September. However, since tabling the motion I received a call from the Department of Education and Science to say that the furniture needs of the school have now been sanctioned. I welcome this and hope the commitment will be acted upon quickly.
However, another question must be addressed. Why do almost all schools have chairs which experts in the Alexander technique for posture and back pain condemn as the cause of back pain? One in two adults in Ireland and the UK has back problems. The early symptoms occur in childhood during the primary school years. I understand the problems with the ISO 140, which are based on a UK standard, are the cause. In this case, it is permitted for schools to have seats where the rake, which is the part on which the child sits, slopes back so the child is forced away from the books on the table and must lean forward. The Department of Education and Science needs to establish a standard whereby the rake will not slope back.
Remedial action can be taken with many chairs. A block of wood can be put beneath the back legs of the chair or a wedge shaped cushion can be used to level the chair. This problem causes more than just back pain. It also eventually causes respiratory problems, can contribute to coronary problems and is a major factor in days lost at work as a result of backache throughout adult life. It is interesting to look at what happened in Japan. Until the 1980s schoolchildren sat on cushions and the level of back problems experienced was half that in the West. Since then, however, the Japanese have westernised and now use chairs. The prevalence of the back pain problem has increased to 50%, affecting one in every two children, according to research I have carried out.
I ask the Minister of State to ensure that this issue, which I raised with the Minister for Education and Science in September 2002, is dealt with. I tabled a parliamentary question on this matter and also mentioned the problem of heavy schoolbags. The Department has established a working group to deal with the schoolbags issue. The Minister's reply did not mention school furniture and simply discussed the weight of schoolbags. From a health point of view, there is clearly an oversight or blind spot in the Department about this matter. I am anxious to ensure that the Minister will at least agree to a meeting with an expert in back pain, posture and the Alexander technique. The Department must set down a clear standard whereby children will get the type of school furniture that will not damage their backs.
A meeting was held with the Department on this matter but the Department is effectively passing the buck to the boards of management. That is not good enough. This Government is responsible for doing what is within its control to promote the health and preventative health care of people, and it has control over the standards set down for school furniture and should determine the standard.
My correspondent, who is an expert on the Alexander technique, informed me that the Minister has written to him and put him in touch with the planning and building unit of the Department. He had a meeting with the Department. He took his son, who suffers from back pain on account of this problem, and his school chair into the meeting. The Department agreed that the chair was a wrong design, even though it was within the specifications allowed by the Department, is on the approved list and so on. However, the Department informed him that although it would recommend certain chairs, many schools buy chairs that are not recommended by the Department and that it has no authority to tell any school what chairs to buy.
After nearly a year of correspondence with the Minister he feels he is back to square one, with his son still complaining of worsening back problems caused directly by his school chair, which even the Department of Education and Science would advise against. He would greatly appreciate any help in setting up a meeting between himself and an official of the Department or the Minister, who has the authority to sort out this issue as soon as possible. This matter is going to cost the country into the future and it can be resolved. It is not a difficult problem but it requires the Department to act.
