Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 6 Mar 1996

Vol. 462 No. 6

Adjournment Debate. - Clonmel (Tipperary) School.

Mr. Davern

I am extremely disppointed that the Minister for Education — this is no reflection on the Minister of State who was not involved in the decision to exclude Clonmel High School — has not come to the House to answer the points I wish to raise. As you, a Cheann Comhairle, and many other Members are aware, this school was meant to cater for an enrolment of 320 pupils. Currently, there are 684 enrolled. It is the only second level academically oriented school in the town and there are 18 feeder schools.

Last year 100 pupils had to be turned away because of lack of space. The closing date this year for the receipt of applications is 19 March and already over 200 application forms have been sent out. There is a real danger that first year pupils will not be taken in. An enrolment of 135 pupils this year would bring the total enrolment to over 700 and such a number would not be manageable. The demand for places in increasing because of the tremendous achievements and excellence of the school.

It is accepted by the Department of Education that the population of Clonmel will continue to increase. It was announced recently that Seagate was to establish in the town and create 1,200 jobs. Employment is also to increase at Medite and Merck Sharp and Dohme. Over £75 million has been invested under the urban renewal scheme.

We constantly make the point to those contemplating establishing industry in the area that it has an excellent centre of education. Unfortunately, their employees will not be able to send their children to it. The alternative is to ask them to send their children to Rockwell College, a fee paying school. This would be out of the question for most people as the costs involved amount to £1,500 to £2,000 per year.

The Minister continues to refuse to sanction the provision of extra accommodation. This may mean that no first year pupils will be taken in in two consecutive years. To say the local community is shocked and outraged is to put it mildly. This will not be tolerated by the pupils, parents and staff who have shown their goodwill on the understanding that the necessary funds will be made available and the work carried out. When the Minister met a deputation last November there was a clear insinuation that the school was at the top of the list and would be given priority if funds became available. One Government Deputy even announced that there would be good news for the school. Many people from that area have done exceptionally well. It is unfortunate, therefore, that for the want of a total of 1,304 square metres of accommodation at a mere cost of £1 million the education of young boys in Clonmel will be stymied.

Out of a budget of more than £2 billion surely the Minister could allocate £200,000 or £300,000 to start this project next October. That amount of money would be sufficient until January. Many builders would extend credit to the Department or facilities could be arranged with banks and other institutions prepared to assist. Unfortunately, however, there does not appear to be any hope. I am fearful the good will of the pupils, parents and staff may be eroded. A total of 39 staff in the school use a staff room intended for 14 people. It is difficult to work in those conditions. The decision not to sanction funding for this project will not encourage investment in the town. I appeal to the Minister of State to persuade the Minister that facilities could be put in place this year. I received a deliberately misleading reply in the House last week——

An Ceann Comhairle

The Deputy should not use the word "deliberate".

Mr. Davern

I apologise. I received an answer which gave the impression that there are planning delays, but I understand that is not the case. Irrespective of how one describes such a reply, people are angry about the matter. A physically handicapped neighbour of mine attends the school but cannot attend certain classes due to the lack of facilities to bring him upstairs and elsewhere. The good will of the teachers, parents and pupils and the strong discipline in the school may not last much longer. If there is not an intake of 135 pupils this year, what alternative do those young people have?

Mr. Allen

I wish to share my time with Deputies Ahearn and Ferris.

An Ceann Comhairle

I am sure that is satisfactory and agreed as sharing is not unusual at this time.

Mrs. T. Ahearn

I thank the Minister for allowing me an opportunity to air my strong views on this issue. While acknowledging the funding allocated by the Minister to Cahir community college, Cashel community school and St. Anne's in Tipperary, the people in Clonmel are shocked at the exclusion of Clonmel High School from funding in this financial year. It is difficult to accept the injustice meted out to young boys who, as a result of this decision, may not be able to continue their secondary education in the town. As a former teacher I realise how difficult it is to provide good education in overcrowded circumstances. As my son is a student at the school I am aware of the discomfort teachers and pupils are experiencing.

I am disappointed that the numerous requests and arguments I made on behalf of the high school in the past 12 months did not result in the Minister listing the school for priority. I ask the Government to immediately allocate the necessary £250,000 for repair works so that the extension can start in October. If that does not happen many boys in Clonmel will not be able to receive a second level education in September.

Mr. Ferris

I thank the Minister of State for allowing us join as a team from the constituency to make a case for funding for Clonmel High School. My colleagues have not over emphasised the problem. The figures stand on their own in respect of the numbers required. It is reassuring to know the Department has at least accepted the need for 600 places. If the high school cannot take in first year students this year — normally it takes in approximately 120 each year — the vocational system will not be able to take up the slack. Consequently, prefab buildings will have to be provided in Clonmel but that is not the answer. The high school project must be given priority. The cost involved would be approximately £880,000. If some of the building work starts this year teachers and parents would be satisfied. Fund raising is taking place in the community and if the Minister gives the project the go-ahead this worthwhile project could start in September.

Minister of State at the Department of Education (Mr. Allen)

I thank the Deputies for raising this matter. It provides me with an opportunity to explain the Department's general policy in relation to the provision of school accommodation and the particular response being made in the case of the High School, Clonmel.

The first point I wish to make is that, in the case of towns such as Clonmel where there is a number of post-primary schools, the Department's responsibility is to ensure that these schools can, between them, cater for all the pupils seeking second level places. In the case of Clonmel, I am satisfied that the two post-primary schools there which cater for boys can indeed accommodate all the pupils seeking second level places.

To be more specific, the two schools in Clonmel which cater for boys could, combined, provide between 240 and 250 intake places. As against that, the number of boys due to leave primary school in the catchment area this year is around 220. It is obvious from these figures that the two post-primary schools, taken together, can readily absorb the total number seeking places.

This is not to say that all pupils will get a place in the school of first choice. The Department must ensure that existing accommodation is fully utilised before the provision of additional pupil places can be considered.

In the case of the Christian Brothers High School, the school authorities submitted proposals to my Department which included a proposal for the provision of some additional accommodation. The Department's planning section examined this application and decided that additional temporary accommodation should be provided at the CBS to cater for projected enrolments of 600 in the short-term and 450 in the long-term. These projections were based on the 1992-93 enrolment figure of 604 pupils.

In reaching its conclusions, the planning section was conscious of the fact that while some temporary accommodation might be necessary to cater for the existing short-term enrolment, there would be sufficient places in the centre as a whole to cater for all the pupils seeking school places.

The current position concerning the planning of the new extension is that the school authorities have been requested to submit the detail design for the project. When this has been received and examined by the Department, the next stage will be the preparation of the bills of quantities, which is the stage prior to the invitation of tenders.

I accept the point made by the Deputies, and indeed by the school authorities, that there is overcrowding in the CBS at the moment. However, I emphasise again that this problem has arisen because a high proportion of the boys seek places in the high school rather than in the vocational school and this has been the case for the past number of years.

I am fully aware of the urgent need for the additional accommodation already approved by the Department for the school. The building project at the CBS was one of a large number of projects considered for inclusion in the 1996 post-primary capital programme. Unfortunately, due to the extremely high level of demand on the available finance, it was not possible to include it on this occasion. However, architectural planning will continue up to the stage where the project is ready to go to tender. At that point, the project will be considered as a matter of priority for inclusion in the 1997 capital programme.