Gary Gannon (Dublin Central, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses. I have three questions or themes the witnesses might speak to or elaborate on. I will ask about morale, resources and guidelines. I am very concerned about morale in the wider school community as it heads back in September. The presentations have rightly pointed out that no teacher has been off for the last six months. In fact, they have been working extremely hard, as have school leaders. My friends and those I know who are teachers are tired and now they are coming in for criticism. For the first time, they are going back to a school environment in which they do not know what their role will be. I am concerned about the morale of teachers and the implications it might have further on into autumn. Are the witnesses concerned about that? What sort of well-being supports are needed for teachers? Are the witnesses concerned about increased levels of sick leave? Should we be factoring that into our considerations?

I will also ask about resources. I have asked the previous Minister and Department officials about things like the digital divide several times. A few months ago, I was told that money was being reallocated but this turned out to be just an accelerated delivery of money that had already been allocated. Last week, I asked a Department official about cleaning staff. I asked how many cleaning staff the Department will hire. I was told that, while the Department does not hire such staff, it does provide funding to hire them and that schools will need more. That funding cannot, however, be provided retrospectively. The money will need to be in schools' accounts by late August.

I also wish to ask about the guidelines. They are just confusing. They are filled with contradictions. For example, schools have the right to refuse students with temperatures but they are not required to take temperatures. I think about the first morning in September when all the schoolchildren will come flooding through the front door and into their classrooms. Who will be there to ensure students are sanitising their hands? The idea of Covid leaders has rightly been mentioned. Who are these Covid leaders? Who should they be? I understand that the organisations represented here do not create the guidelines, but do the representatives believe this role should be filled by special needs assistants, school secretaries or teachers? In the absence of clear guidelines, is there potential for conflict within the wider school community in September?