Léim ar aghaidh chuig an bpríomhábhar
Gnáthamharc

Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 12 Mar 1996

Vol. 462 No. 8

Adjournment Debate. - Lucan (Dublin) Post-Primary Schools.

I raise this matter because of repeated representations by concerned parents to me and, no doubt, to colleagues. For many years Lucan has had three post-primary facilities — the Christian Brothers school, St. Joseph's post-primary girl's school and the Lucan community college born out of the former technical school in the village. I first brought this matter to the attention of the Minister for Education in February 1994. In reply to a parliamentary question on 15 February 1994, the Minister explained that two of the three post-primary schools in Lucan — Coláiste Phádraig boy's secondary school and Lucan community school — had sought additional post-primary places and that these applications were being assessed. I asked that an independent commission study the future requirements of the Lucan area, but the Minister, in her wisdom, decided that was not necessary.

A year later I tabled another parliamentary question and on Thursday, 9 February 1995, the Minister said that the review had been completed and that an assessment of the application for each of the three post-primary schools for capital grant aid towards the provision of additional accommodation had been completed. It is now March 1996 and the Lucan community college project is supposedly winding its way through the tortuous delaying tactical type procedures which appear to exist in the Department of Education where analyses, assessments and sketch plans, etc., are undertaken.

A project has supposedly been approved for Lucan community college but with a severe financial-technical-quality sting in its tail. According to normal guidelines issued by the Department, £520 per square metre should be allocated for the construction of a properly equipped post-primary facility. However, County Dublin vocational education committee is supposed to be capable of building an extension to the college at a cost of £389 per square metre. County Dublin vocational education committee has told the Department this is impossible.

The Lucan area has exploded in terms of housing, which is a welcome development. The success of Intel in Leixlip, the proposed development of Hewlett Packard and the existing good housing market has meant that Lucan has become the focus of development in the greater Dublin region. In the past three to four years approximately 2,000 new homes have been or are being constructed. Many of the people moving to this area have children of post-primary age and as a result, there is pressure for post-primary facilities.

The Christian Brothers, the nuns and the community college must get the all-clear to provide these urgent additional spaces. At present 683 pupils are enrolled in Lucan community college, but the projected 800 pupil facility is probably carrying 183 pupils above its original design. Parents are uncertain about where to send their sons and daughters for post-primary education. This is an acute problem which must be addressed and I would like the Minister to outline how this will be done.

I thank the Deputy for raising the matter. It gives me an opportunity, on behalf of the Minister for Education, to clarify the position. In late 1993 and early 1994 applications were received in the Department from the three post-primary schools in Lucan for additional accommodation. These three schools are Coláiste Phádraig boy's secondary school, Coláiste Iosef Naofa girl's secondary school and Lucan Community College.

Following receipt of the applications, a review of the post-primary needs of the Lucan area was carried out. As a result of this review, it was agreed that extensions to each school should be approved. At present all three extensions are at various planning stages.

In addition, grant aid was approved last August for the provision of four temporary classrooms at one of the schools to alleviate its short-term accommodation difficulties. The Department will ensure that the permanent extensions to all three schools will be provided as soon as possible.

The Department is also carrying out a further review of the area to ensure that all Lucan children seeking a place in post-primary schools in the area can be accommodated now and in the future. I understand that the three schools can between them accommodate a total intake of at least 380 pupils each September. Given that the number of pupils leaving primary schools in Lucan each year is around 300, it would be expected that all pupils could be readily accommodated, although not necessarily in the school of their first choice.

It seems that some of the schools have traditionally enrolled pupils from adjacent areas and that this trend has continued. This approach can cause problems in ensuring that all Lucan pupils are readily accommodated. The Department expects that schools will normally cater for the demand from their own locality in the first instance and, only if space is still available, enrol outside pupils. The Department will also consider this issue as part of its latest review of the Lucan area.

I appreciate that some pupils have had a difficulty in securing a place in one of the Lucan schools for next September. However, the latest information available to me indicates that all of these pupils have now been offered a place and the Deputy can be assured that the Department will make every effort to ensure that similar problems will not arise in the future.

Barr
Roinn