Violet-Anne Wynne (Clare, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Humphreys, outlined to me yesterday evening that she would not be in a position to take this question here this morning. Nonetheless, I am very grateful to the Minister for her engagement on the matter and for ensuring that the Minister of State, Deputy Browne, is present in order for the question to be taken today. It is vitally important for me, as a public representative, to highlight this matter today. It is of huge importance to my constituents in north Clare and it involves more than 700 students. On Friday last I received an influx of emails, predominantly from parents but also from others in the school community, who have been impacted by this issue. The emails informed me that in September this year the new Ennistymon Community School opened in north Clare - not in a new building - as an amalgamation of three schools: the former Scoil Mhuire, Meánscoil na mBráithre CBS, and Ennistymon Vocational School. The new school operates across the three buildings of the former schools and will continue to do so until quarter 1 of 2024 due to building delays.

Students from the three former schools are mixed across the three sites. Ennistymon Vocational School was a DEIS school and the principal of the new Ennistymon Community School has told me they were advised the new school would hold that DEIS status for six years. There is quite a bit of confusion at play here. In June 2023 the school completion project, SCP, co-ordinator, was verbally assured by the social inclusion section of the Department that the new Ennistymon Community School would receive full school meals funding from 1 September. The SCP co-ordinator was told that a note was placed in the file and a letter would issue in August to confirm same. It was outlined to the principal that it is common practice for letters to issue from the Department at the end of August. However, confirmation from the social inclusion unit in relation to the Ennistymon school meals budget was not in any way confirmed. At the end of October it was outlined that the school meals would only be provided based on the numbers previously held by the vocational school, which is approximately of one third of the new school. I do not believe it is workable that some students in a new amalgamation setting would receive hot meals and others would not. I am unsure how this was an option and why that would be the case.

On foot of the verbal assurance given that all students would get the full school meals provision in June, the School Food Company hired two additional staff and purchased a van to transport food to all three campuses. The Ennis school completion project and the school provided a full school meals provision across all three campuses. The school found itself in an impossible situation when the newly sanctioned school meals budget was withdrawn abruptly. The School Food Company has been forced to let three staff go without any notice, just a few weeks before Christmas. One of the staff got in touch at the weekend to make the point that not only has a fantastic service been taken away from the school, but jobs have been taken as well. Those who were in a job that they loved since day one are now left without a wage with Christmas coming up. They are angry and upset because they have no money coming in to pay all their bills.

This school has students mixed across all three sites due to the building delay. They will be forced to pick and choose from each year group as to who qualifies for a subsidised lunch over others. One can imagine that this would cause great difficulty. As of now, all students have benefited from this service since 1 September. The sudden withdrawal has caused massive distress and upset to these students and their families. I was incredibly pleased to be informed yesterday evening by the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, that in light of the circumstances an exception has been made and that school meals will continue to be funded for all children going forward. This was the correct action to take and will go some way to alleviate the stress that has unfolded in the past week for everyone involved.

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