Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for being present for this debate. The hour is late and, therefore, I appreciate her attendance.

She will undoubtedly be aware that planning permission has been refused at a new site for the Malahide Portmarnock Educate Together National School. I was there on Friday when I met its principal, Ms Emer Hoy, her deputy principal, Ms Ríona Wise, and Mr. Matt Harrison, a member of the board of management who is also a staff member. I walked around the school and looked at the accommodation. To say that it was less than ideal would be flattering. I pay tribute to the school staff and parents for keeping the show on the road, but the school has been in temporary accommodation for eight years. I understand that the need for primary education is decreasing in some areas, but that is not the case in my area. We are one of the fastest growing areas, not just in the State, but in Europe. As such, the need for the school is increasing and it has to be put on a permanent footing.

It is impossible for Emer or any of the staff to be able to plan.

I want to hear if the Minister can set out a realistic timeframe for the delivery of the new school because it looks like they have been put back to the start of what was a long process. As I have said, they spent eight years in temporary accommodation. We could have a conversation about what "temporary" means if it lasts for eight years. There comes a point when the word "temporary" has to be replaced with "inappropriate" if the accommodation is not appropriate. Having said that, the staff are doing their best to keep the show on the road for the sake of the pupils. There are simple things. For example, they have the use of a field but they do not have access to it because they do not have a gate to get into it. That would be an additional place for the kids to go and play. They are doing running repairs on the accommodation, which is less than ideal but they know they have it for at least the next two years thereafter. The hope would be that they would be moving into a new school. I hope the Minister will tell me that will happen but they cannot be in a constant situation of doing running repairs when they do not know when they will get their new accommodation.

Everybody agrees they need the new accommodation; there is no disputing that. The Minister, the parents, the pupils and the staff do not dispute that. We know there needs to be new accommodation and that it is in a part of the State where the population is growing, so the need is there. The staff want to hear if the Minister will commit her officials to working closely with Emer, the rest of the staff, the board of management, the parents and the representatives there to deliver this and to ensure they do not have to go through the same processes they have already gone through again. They are at this stage where they have spent eight years in temporary accommodation, including seven years in their current location. The news that the planning permission was not granted devastated the parents. I was going to come in and read out the emails and recount the situation to the Minister but she knows exactly what news like that will do to a community. The pupils who started originally are finished. They started in the temporary school thinking it might be a year or two years, maybe three at a push, but they are finishing primary school and moving on to secondary school. I am hoping the Minister has some good news for me tonight.

See this speech in context