Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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I thank the Ceann Comhairle for affording me the opportunity to raise this issue in the absence of the Minister for Education and Science, who explained to me why she could not be present tonight. I am very pleased her substitute is a Wexford man who is very familiar with the school to which I want to draw attention, the Loreto secondary school, Spawell Road, Wexford.

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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I have a particular affection for the Loreto secondary school.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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That is very good. The Minister will be aware that the school is one of the most successful secondary schools not only in County Wexford but in the country. On the principle that the meek inherit the earth, I am afraid the school accepted a situation in which facilities were allowed to deteriorate over a period of years to an unacceptable level while expecting that the Department of Education and Science would eventually recognise the righteousness of its case and it would get the decent facilities it requires.

The school began negotiations with the Department in 1997. A revised schedule of overall accommodation was issued on 30 May 2001 following protracted negotiations. That was based on a long-term enrolment of 600 students. Officials from the Department met school management and the design team in the school in July 2001 when the schedule was fleshed out in detail. The design team submitted a stage two report to the Department in July 2002, for which the cost of the extension and refurbishment required and agreed was of the order of €6 million to €7 million.

In January 2003 the Department's website showed that the project was not to be progressed that year. The pupils, staff and parents remained quiet and waited till the next year. In January 2004, however, the website indicated that it would not progress in that year. These people are angry that their project did not appear on the website last January. I submitted a parliamentary question to the Minister to which the reply was that this project is in the early stages of architectural planning.

The school has 660 pupils, although the plan subsequent to the refurbishment and investment was to cater for 600. It is expected that total enrolment by September 2006 will be 700 students. The 660 students have no sports hall and access to only two science laboratories. In May 2001, the schedule gave the school entitlement to three laboratories and a demonstration room. The existing laboratories are in chronic need of refurbishment. They have been upgraded since they were built in 1970 but are unsuited to some of the present curriculum demands.

The school is inaccessible to wheelchair pupils or staff. It has no lift. The middle block of the building is so unsuitable for school use that, after a visit by officials of the Department, the design team recommended its demolition and replacement with a purpose-built building as part of the stage two report. Despite numerous letters to the Department from the board of management and the parents' council, and representations from all my colleagues, there has been no progress on this project for the past two and a half years.

I attended a very angry meeting of staff, pupils, parents and Wexford people who feel absolutely neglected. The Minister may have received direct representations because one of the most coherent speeches that night was made by a very eloquent and focused teacher with strong convictions who happens to be a close relative of the Minister present. I am sure she has made direct representations to him.

I put the case to the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government and to the Department of Education and Science that this is a fine school with a fine reputation but it is at risk for lack of basic facilities. This is unacceptable in a time of plenty when education is a cornerstone of our development.

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. As he said, it is a school in which I have a particular interest. I endorse all his points about its excellence and superb teaching record. I will outline the response of the Minister for Education and Science to the query about the school.

The design process is under way for a large-scale building and refurbishment project at the school to cater for a long-term projected enrolment of 600 girls, although according to Deputy Howlin that figure has already been overtaken. The planned extension consists of a total area of 1,588 sq. m. and will include specialist rooms such as a PE hall, and general classroom accommodation.

The project is at an early stage of architectural planning and a stage two submission has been received. It has been given a band rating of 2.4 in accordance with the 2005 published criteria for prioritising large-scale projects. This project was not sufficiently advanced in architectural design to be considered for inclusion in the recently announced 122 major school building projects that will progress to tender and construction phase over the next 12-15 months under the €3.4 billion multi-annual funding secured for the years 2005 to 2009.

The Minister for Education and Science is anxious to ensure that a consistent flow of projects to tender and construction can be sustained. The Minister also plans to make several announcements soon on the schools building and modernisation programme, including details of those school projects which will progress through the design process. All projects in architectural planning, including the school in question, will be considered as part of this process.

I will pass on the Deputy's comments and cogent arguments. These were echoed by my sister-in-law when she spoke to me privately on the issue. I thank the Deputy once again for raising the matter and I will draw his concerns and my own to the attention of the Minister.