Vol. 495 No. 7
707 Proinsias De Rossa asked the Minister for Education and Science if he will continue the substance misuse programme in Ballymun school, Dublin 11, in its present form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21392/98]
710 Mr. P. Carey asked the Minister for Education and Science if his Department's substance misuse prevention programme which is operating in the primary school in Ballymun, Dublin 11 will be continued in its present form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21429/98]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 707 and 710 together.
Two of the primary schools in Ballymun, Dublin 11, participated in the pilot-testing of the educational resource materials being developed by my Department, for the support of substance misuse prevention education programmes in primary schools, when this pilot-testing began at the beginning of the school-year 1996-97. After the first revision of these resource materials, in the summer of 1997, their use was extended to other primary schools and three more primary schools in Ballymun opted into the project. The resource materials were further revised last summer after their use in schools was evaluated. The full package of materials is being finalised and prepared now, in readiness for dissemination to primary schools generally, in the context of the introduction of social, personal and health education, as part of the revised primary school curriculum.
There is no reason why the five primary schools in Ballymun, currently using the resource materials, should not continue to use them in support of their school programmes on substance misuse. They will, of course, receive the revised set of resource materials when they become available.
