Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 27 October 2004
118 Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Education and Science the number of proposals that exist to have canteens built in schools in view of RAPID’s offer to supply ovens and other relevant facilities at locations at which such canteens will be put in place. [26152/04]
View answerMy Department and the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs have had discussions on providing kitchen facilities in schools with RAPID designation that have a spare room that could be converted for this purpose.
The initiative is very worthy of support and I am anxious to make some provision for such projects in the context of the 2005 building programme. Further discussion is required between Departments in the coming weeks to fully tease out all the issues involved. Once the Estimates and budgetary process are complete we will finalise a date for publication of the 2005 programme, at which time we should be able to provide further detail on the matter.
The main question concerned when the canteens will be established. The Minister mentioned the 2005 building programme. If projects enter the planning process in 2005, will work proceed in 2006 or 2007? The latest report on child poverty states that 66,000 children experience basic deprivation, which means they went to school without a substantial meal on one day in the previous two weeks and did not have a meal with meat, fish or chicken every second day. One sixth of girls between ten and 11 from the lower social classes reported they never had a breakfast during the week.
A child who goes to school with no food in his or her stomach cannot concentrate. The breakfast clubs are working and the proposals to have canteens built in schools represent the next step. Is there any way of speeding up the process given that it works and is necessary?
I firmly believe that breakfast clubs work. I saw them work very successfully when I was Minister of State with responsibility for children, at which time we were able to fund a number of them. They work extremely well in attracting the children to school even in my constituency. It is a sad indictment of our society that children go to school for the breakfast but at least this has the desired effect in that it nurtures the whole child and not just the child's educational needs.
Issues always arise concerning providing food and cooking facilities regardless of the location, but particularly in a school setting. Obviously, a number of issues have to be teased out, the first of which concerns health and safety, particularly if one is to provide hot food using facilities in close proximity to children. The level of funding to be provided by my Department and that of the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Deputy Ó Cuív, must also be considered given that we are talking about RAPID areas. Management must be borne in mind. Will the school, teachers or parents be involved in running the clubs? I know some schools involve both the teachers and parents. What current funding issues would arise if others had to be paid to provide the service for the children?
On the schools building programme, about which the Deputy asked, school canteens are not generally included under a special subheading given that the programme deals with everything from asbestos to halls. Some schools include what is called a servery, wherein crockery, cutlery, a hot water boiler and maybe some food can be stored. In post-primary schools a fridge and cooker would also be included.
Recently, canteens have been included, particularly in the PPP schools in Dunmanway, Ballincollig, Tubbercurry, Shannon and Clones. I see value in the proposals to build canteens but a number of issues must be considered first.
