John Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I apologise on behalf of Deputy Lahart who wished to contribute but, due to a clash of times, cannot make it. Scoil Mochua is a relatively small school located in Clondalkin, with about 74 pupils. The children have multiple disabilities including physical and other severe disabilities. Recently, Deputy Ó Broin and I had an opportunity to visit the school and meet the pupils and their teachers. We saw the physical condition of the school. More importantly, we saw the difficulty posed for the children in carrying out their daily activities. The school's conditions are poor and the accommodations are not appropriately planned. All of these children have physical disabilities, with walkers, wheelchairs and so forth. The physical space to manoeuvre is simply not sufficient. This causes severe hardship on an ongoing and daily basis. The school is also in a very poor condition in respect of toilet and sanitary facilities and so forth. It is not fit for purpose.

I emphasise that this is not a constituency matter. While the school is located in Clondalkin, the pupils come from Clondalkin, Lucan, Ballyfermot, Tallaght, Naas and other areas. It is a very particular issue. Having looked at the facilities in the school, we believe they are grossly inadequate for the needs of the children. They are children with significant challenges and although the physical condition of the school should not be adding to their daily challenge, unfortunately it is.

I am delighted that colleagues from other parties are joining to appeal to the Minister that this school simply cannot wait. The teachers have indicated to us that the Department has informed them that, in the future, there will be a new school building. We are asking the Minister to consider advancing the date for this specific school. There is a very significant, immediate adverse impact on the children. We believe the refurbishments should be advanced more quickly.

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