Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

To reiterate, everyone is interested in securing Cork Life Centre and making it sustainable. I absolutely accept that and understand its importance. We have done considerable work with the review and we are doing even more work with the implementation group. My sole objective is to ensure that centres such as the Cork Life Centre and others are sustainable into the future. I know the importance of ensuring that children and young people are catered for in a setting that will meet their needs. We are intent on doing that work.

On the availability of free books at primary level, there is investment of over €50 million which is significant. It will lessen the load placed on parents and guardians but also ensure that every child will have an equal opportunity and access to text books and everything else. On the Senator's concerns about local retailers, there is already excellent work ongoing in our schools around the book rental scheme we have. Invariably the book rental scheme is operated in co-operation with the local retailer, the book shop or whatever. Schools will have the absolute freedom to determine how they will operate the roll-out of the free book scheme. Many will have already built up relationships with their local providers and may well seek to continuing with that relationship. That will not be prevented or inhibited by the Department. It is important to say that.

On school places in the area for new children and young people who may come in, we are very fortunate that we have capacity in our school system. I will be honest that we have greater capacity in some areas than others and we make that clear. The Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth has responsibility for providing accommodation. We seek to work with the Department where we have capacity in our schools. We are fortunate that we do have enough capacity in our schools in various places, notwithstanding that it might be more challenging in some areas than others. However, in general, there is capacity available.

On the National Council for Curriculum Assessment and the review of SPHE and RSE syllabus, the third national strategy on the need to promote and cultivate a society of zero tolerance for gender and sexual-based violence was launched recently. We are absolutely committed to ensuring that there is zero tolerance around this. It is very important that our students are educated appropriately and have the appropriate tools to know how to manage this world of information that comes before them today, particularly that is available to them automatically on their phones. It is uncensored and unsupervised. It is very important that we have skill sets in our schools to provide for students in that respect. The Senator mentioned what is being taught and how. We are ensuring that there will be an opportunity for our staff to take up postgraduate studies, the costs of which will be covered by the Department, to ensure that they will be sufficiently trained up in the area of SPHE and RSE and also ensuring that by providing this expertise that will in turn be made available to our students but also ensure the importance of the subject is emphasised in our schools. It is important that our students have information and that it is the right information imparted to them by professionals who are experienced in the area. It is not, and never will be appropriate that they will have access to this information.