James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for that commitment. I want the Department to go further, however. I appreciate there is only so much the Minister of State can say and do tonight. I thank him for the commitment to take the matter to the Minister, Deputy Foley. As he stated, I have discussed the matter with her on several occasions. I acknowledge her good faith on the matter but we need to see action, the letter of intent issued and the matter moved on.

A separate issue relating to the school is that two years ago, it applied to embrace a co-educational approach, with both sexes attending. Traditionally, it was co-educational up to a certain point at which children of one sex left. The senior classes were single-sex. The application was supported by staff, the school community and parental bodies. A poll, consultation or vote was held within the school and the application was overwhelmingly supported by staff and parents. We are now two years on. When a child is attending a particular school, parents have decisions to make that flow from whether a sibling can go to the same school. These are important choices parents make annually which affect the whole family, work decisions and related matters.

The application for co-educational status has still not been progressed. I realise this is not entirely within the control of the Department. It may not be within its control at all but, rather, a matter of patronage. I pay credit to Bishop Denis Nulty. I spoke to him this evening on this issue and am progressing it through the patron as well. However, I ask the Department to use its influence to address the issue. There is significant disappointment that the school does not have its new building and now the co-educational situation is adding insult to injury. A new school building for a school that is co-educational from junior to senior streams is what is wanted in that school community. It is not too much to ask. I ask the Minister to make every effort to advance both issues, primarily that of the school building, which is within the domain of the Department, but also the co-educational aspect, which is an important issue for the school community.

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