Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael)

I thank the Minister for his initiative in announcing that €35 million would be provided to replace substandard prefabs, many of which are in my constituency. I believe the provisions of the Bill will lead to better practices in schools of education and will lead to better teachers coming out at the far end. It will also provide that those wanting to go into teaching will be safeguarded when they are in that role. As I come from an area where DEIS schools are very much in demand, I agree with Deputy Finian McGrath. My children all went to DEIS schools whose teachers were excellent, not just as teachers but also in how they looked after children with different social needs. They looked after the wellbeing of children from breakfast in the morning right through to after-school programmes in the evening. It takes a special person to teach in such a school. They need to be interested not only in the academic aspect but in the overall well being of children.

Last week I visited two schools in my area - School Street and Goldenbridge - and I am always impressed with the changes there, particularly with the new literacy initiative.

Some of my comments are not to the Bill but I welcome the opportunity to make them nevertheless. I have lived, worked and gone to school in an area regarded as disadvantaged. At present, there are four primary schools and one secondary school under the DEIS programme in my area in Inchicore. There are 900 students between these four schools, a remarkably low number. When my children went to these schools there were between 400 and 600 in each of them. Now, some have an enrolment as low as 240 pupils. Why is this happening? Why do people chose to send their children outside a parish which in the past had considerable school numbers and where the teachers are as qualified today as they used to be? Why is there such a stigma around sending children to DEIS programme schools? I do not have the answer but in the area where I live and work, the label of a DEIS programme school is put not only on the school but on the children and the community. I have real concerns for all of these schools in the area where I live. It may benefit some schools in the short term to be under the DEIS label because in the past they received extra money and teachers but how does it benefit them in the long run? Of the five schools I referred to, I foresee at least two of them closing because I simply do not know how they can keep a sufficient number of children on the roll book.

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