asked the Minister for Education if he will indicate the estimated capital cost of the proposed new detention centre at Lusk, County Dublin; and the proportion of that amount which represents the capital required to install the sewerage system.
Written Answers . - County Dublin Detention Centre .
398.
: The cost of building this new residential school, including the cost of staff housing, is estimated at £2.3 million. Consultations regarding the specifications for the sewerage system are at present in progress with Dublin County Council, which is the santiary authority for the area. Pending competion of these consulations it is not possible to give a precise figure for the cost of the sewerage system.
399.
asked the Minister for Education if he is satisfied in regard to the sutiability of the site for the installation of a sewerage system to cater for the proposed new detention centre at Lusk, County Dublin, taking into account the following matters; (a) the unreliability of the local council water supply, (b) the lack of natural drainage in the area, (c) the unsuitability of the soil and (d) the unsatisfactory operation of the smaller sewerage system at present serving the open school at Ard Mhuire, County Dublin.
: Appropriate technical tests have been carried out and I am satisfied that this site is suitable for a sewage treatment plant of the type proposed, which will be designed to meet the requirements of Dublin County Council, the sanitary authority for the area. The recent unsatisfactory operation of the septic tank system at Scoil Ard Mhuire is not due to any of the factors mentioned. The faults have been of an operational nature and steps are being taken to have them remedied.
400.
asked the Minister for Education if he is aware that the new detention centre at Lusk, County Dublin, will only be secured by way of a 14 foot high wire mesh fence in areas of the perimeter not occupied by buildings, one area being a football field, and that the outer perimeter will only be surrounded by a conventional chain link fence; and whether this will suffice to prevent access to the school from outside and also escapes.
: The essential purpose of this school is to provide a secure setting within which the boys can be accommodated. The school has been designed structurally so that with a perimeter fence the necessary security is provided as unobtrusively as possible. In the main, security is provided by the building themselves. Accordingly, security fencing has been kept to a minimum and is concentrated chiefly on the games area. Where used, it takes the form of an unclimbable heavy-duty fence. The outer chain link fence is intended only to mark the boundary of the site and is not part of the security system.
The school will be staffed on a 24-hour a day basis and the layout is such as to facilitate easy surveillance by staff both inside and outside the premises. I am satisfied that the measures taken are adequate to the needs of the situation.
401.
asked the Minister for Education if he has been made aware that it is proposed that the swimming pool facilities of the present Ard Mhuire complex, County Dublin, will be shared by the new detention centre, Lusk, County Dublin; and, if so, what precautions will be taken to prevent escapes during the period of usage of the pool.
: In accordance with the recommendations of the Task Force on Child Care Services, the aim of the new school at Lusk will be to prepare the child for his eventual return to the community by his being phased through an open facility with increasing degrees of freedom. The use of the swimming pool in Scoil Ard Mhuire could well form part of his preparation. Apporporiate measures of control and supervision would, of cours, be exrcised.