Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein)
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Petition No. P00048/23, stop the eviction of Doon men's shed, from Mr. Tom Richardson. A convent in Doon that was publicly funded closed in 2016. In 2018, Doon men's shed started in a space from the nuns at a nominal rate. Ballyhoura Rural Services took over trusteeship for free two years later. It was to continue the nuns' charitable work under the auspices of the Charities Regulator. It paid nothing for the property but seems to believe the nuns gave it something more like a freehold. It is not local and has not consulted with the community on any of the ideas. Now it has issued an eviction order to the only established not for profit using any of the 35,000 sq. ft. If it gets no funding, there will be 35,000 sq. ft of useless space, instead of over 33,000 sq. ft as it is. The space could be empty forever. The Ballyhoura group denies the building can be sectioned off and reckon having these retired men in proximity to vulnerable users is intractable. It regrets the nuns ever gave the men's shed any space at nominal rates, even though men sheds are the closest match to its own online stated objects, such as dealing with rural isolation. If that was the real object, the men's shed could be a flagship project. The Ballyhoura Rural Services made one verbal suggestion. It stated it would not have any money for one year at minimum so would give the shed a one-year lease, confirmed as non-renewable. This is a guillotine clause, and turkeys do not vote to keep Christmas.

The secretariat wrote and received a response from the Department of Rural and Community Development, which concluded by stating:

The Department of Rural and Community Development (DRCD) has no role in relation to operational matters of any individual Men’s Shed, nor in relation to any lease agreements or related issues between two parties. Furthermore, while DRCD has provided one-off funding under various schemes in recent years, there is no ongoing funding relationship or commitment between this Department and any individual men’s shed or parent body.

The recommendation is that the correspondence from the Department be forwarded to the petitioners for comment within 14 days. Do members wish to have a say or is that agreed? Agreed.

Petition No. P00049/23, extra time to be introduced as a reasonable accommodation for dyslexic students in State examinations - junior cycle and leaving certificate. It is from Rosie Bissett from the Dyslexia Association of Ireland. This petition concerns dyslexic students, who face significant challenges with extended reading and writing and often run out of time in formal exams, which leaves them unable to demonstrate their full understanding of the topics being assessed. Extra time in exams will help to overcome this disadvantage and level the playing field in line with international best practice. The provision of extra time would address need not currently accommodated, including a spelling and grammar waiver.

The secretariat wrote to the Department of Education and received a response that included input from the State Examination Commission, SEC. The recommendation is that the correspondence from the Department be forwarded to the petitioner for comment within 14 days. Do members wish to give a view?