I wish to thank the Chair for giving me the opportunity to raise this matter and also the Minister of State who has come to reply. Saint Joseph's special school is a two storey building which was reconstructed as a primary school in 1962-63. The changeover to a special school began in 1968 and it ceased to be a primary school in 1976. There are four classrooms downstairs and seven upstairs. The pupils range in age from five to 18 years. The physically disabled pupils in the school should have access to all parts of the school just as their fellow pupils have; that is to the seven classrooms, the principal's office, the staff room etc. on the upper storey.
Through custom and practice, since the establishment of the school, pupils have progressed from the reception class, through the junior classes on the ground floor, to the post primary and senior classes on the second floor. It is part of the ethos of Saint Joseph's that pupils look upon going upstairs as a milestone in their education and development. The physically disabled pupils fight a daily battle to live with their disabilities. The school encourages and supports their spirit and courage. They do not dampen their spirits by confining them to a specific area of the school. Furthermore, it is not feasible to accommodate the physically disabled pupils on the ground floor because furniture, fittings and toilet facilities are geared specifically for young children.
If senior disabled pupils with their classes were to be accommodated downstairs the problems would merely be compounded because many younger pupils have walking difficulties or lack sufficient co-ordination to get up and down the stairs safely several times daily. This so-called solution would actually worsen the problem and increase the need for a lift.
The report of a special education review committee, chapter 7, paragraph 3.5, deals in detail with the current need. The summary recommendation is that the Department of Education must ensure that all necessary funding is made available speedily to school management authorities who wish to make modifications to school buildings, furniture, fittings or lighting in order to accommodate pupils with disabilities. Five pupils use wheelchairs or crutches and four have walking difficulties.
Application was made to the Department of Education in March 1981 for the building of ramps and the installation of a lift. In that month the school received an estimate of costings as follows: lift installation, £22,500 and ancillary building work, £16,890. I spoke to the school principal on a visit to Saint Joseph's on Friday last and it appears that the final figure could be much lower. In October 1991 the Department's professional advisers looked into the matter. Having received no further reply, the board of management again wrote to the Department in 1992 outlining the ongoing hardship and safety aspects. In February 1992 they received a letter from the Department informing them that they would be grant-aided for the provision of ramps but, it stated: "the Department does not grant-aid lifts to schools". The ramps have now been provided.
In April 1992 the school reapplied for a lift, once more outlining the discriminations, safety hazards etc. In April 1992 a question was tabled in the Dáil to which the Minister replied: "The matter is being reviewed and a decision will be conveyed to the school as early as possible". Since then the school authorities have written on several occasions again pleading their case. The Minister replied that she was looking into alternatives and that it was not the policy of her Department to grant-aid lifts to schools. This message was once more conveyed to me, in reply to a Dáil question on 11 March 1993. I wrote again to the Minister on 19 July, received an acknowledgement dated 29 July, but I have heard nothing further.
When I visited Saint Joseph's on Friday I saw a 12-year old girl and a 14-year old boy trying to go down the stairs. On average it takes this young girl 25 minutes per trip while the young boy can manage it in 15 minutes. On a normal day this girl has to negotiate that stairs on six occasions while on one day per week, when she has a cookery class downstairs, she must negotiate the stairs on eight occasions. This means that this unfortunate young girl spends three hours and 20 minutes on the stairs. The boy also has six normal trips in a day but on two days per week he has to attend classes in a central technical institute across the road, which requires an extra four trips for him. Therefore, on those two days he spends two hours and 30 minutes on the stairs. Ironically, when he goes to the technical institute there is a lift to take him to the upstairs of that building.
This young man is quite determined and through his own efforts has progressed from a wheelchair to a walker and now on to crutches. However, his doctor is most concerned that his progress will be halted due to the strenuous efforts he must make every day in negotiating this stairway. It is ludicrous that so much time must be spent on the stairs. Even on a wet day the staff must ensure that the stairs is dry for the pupils as they pull themselves up and down on their bottoms. I have a photograph which I can give to the Minister which shows the situation there. Previously it had been suggested that alternatives were being looked at. I had thought of the possibility of a chair lift but having looked at the stairs I am satified it could not accommodate such a chair lift.
Ministers are worried about creating precedents. There are not that many special schools in the country and there are even fewer situated on two floors. The problem will not go away when these two children eventually leave the school as there are others downstairs who will soon have the problem. It is an ongoing one. Therefore, I implore the Minister to please make the necessary funding available to provide a lift and end the misery for these children.
