Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Ceann Comhairle for giving me an opportunity to raise this issue in the House and congratulate an Aire Stáit on her appointment. While the Minister of State is a capable individual, she is acting this evening on behalf of the Departments of Health and Children, Arts, Sport and Tourism, Environment, Heritage and Local Government and Education and Science. It is a disgrace that the responsible Ministers did not believe it to be worthwhile to come before the House to listen to the points being made by Members. Of the three Ministers in the Department of Education and Science, not one believed it was worthwhile to listen to me raise an issue which affects many children in Roscommon town and throughout my constituency. The treatment Deputies have received this evening is an insult to the House. In fairness to the Minister of State, she has not given an explanation for the failure of the four relevant Ministers to turn up this evening.

Currently, 855 pupils attend primary schools in the four schools in the parish of Roscommon. In addition, many more pupils are attending schools outside the parish because of the waiting list for schools placement in the parish. Three of the four schools have submitted applications to the Department's primary building unit.

Both Scoil Mhuire and Kilteevan national school have a band 2.4 rating. They have been described by the Department as having a deficit of mainstream accommodation, but it is not extensive or critical. I believe the band rating for both of those schools is wrong because refurbishment of a sizeable proportion of their accommodation is required to bring them up to standard.

The third school is Gaelscoil de hÍde which has a band rating of 2.2. The Department believes that the deficit of mainstream accommodation constitutes a substantial and significant proportion of the school's accommodation needs.

Two of the schools have waiting lists for enrolment. The Gaelscoil has closed its enrolment for the next couple of years. Scoil Mhuire has 27 children on the waiting list for 1 September next year, that is, a full class for which the school cannot cater. These children are living in Roscommon town and going to schools in the town's hinterland in areas such as Kilteevan, Cloverhill and Athleague, which is creating additional challenges for those schools.

Scoil Mhuire has the land on which to build the extension. The board of management wants to ensure a high standard of education for all the children and it is not prepared to increase the class sizes from 28 pupils until it has a guarantee that the funding will be provided for the extension. The Department of Education and Science states that a school is full when it has an average pupil-teacher ratio of 28.

Most of Scoil Mhuire's classrooms were built in 1902. They are far too small to house the number of children in the school. It is not acceptable that we are housing children in schools that are over 100 years old.

The Gaelscoil is in a temporary building and requires a permanent site. I understand that the OPW has looked at a site of approximately three acres but no progress has been made in that regard. It continues to rent a building but provides no additional capacity to cater for the demand for the school.

Kilteevan national school requires an additional classroom, wheelchair accessible toilets, a staff room and an office.

Scoil Mhuire made an application for seven additional classrooms and, as I stated, it has an available site. To compound the current problem, the Department, based on its estimates for the 2008 to 2014 period, predicts that an additional five classrooms will be required to deal with the demand.

Not only is it causing considerable problems and anxiety for the parents who are trying to get placements for their children in the schools within the parish, it is also having a spill-over effect on the other schools. For example, I raised the case on 16 December last of 11 pupils from Roscommon town who cannot avail of school transport to Cloverhill national school even though they live the required distance from the school because the Department claims they are not attending the nearest schools to them. However, their nearest school and the next nearest school do not have the capacity to cater for them. Surely they should be entitled to school transport when the Department is not prepared to get its act together to provide the funding urgently required for the three schools within the Roscommon parish. We should be trying to ensure that every child has the opportunity to attend his or her local school. Given that children must be transported distances outside the town, they are missing classes because the parents may not have transport available to them and no public transport is available.

Áine Brady (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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I am replying to this Adjournment matter on behalf of my colleague, the Minister for Education and Science, Deputy Batt O'Keeffe.

At the outset I thank the Deputy for raising the matter as it affords me the opportunity to outline to the Dáil the process being utilised to ensure that there will be adequate accommodation in schools at primary and post-primary level in all parts of the country.

The forward planning section of the Department of Education and Science is in the process of identifying the areas where significant additional accommodation will be required at primary and post-primary levels for future school years. Factors under consideration include population growth, demographic trends, current and projected enrolments, recent and planned housing developments and the capacity of existing schools to meet the demand for places. Having considered these factors decisions will be taken on the means by which emerging needs will be met within an area.

The forward planning section utilises the latest in geographical information system, GIS, technology to assist in planning school requirements in the future. The GIS contains information on all schools in the country, at primary and post-primary levels, geo-coded to their location. The information is then linked to the relevant demographic information for those areas - typically, the demographic information will be from the Central Statistics Office, the General Registrar of Births, the Department of Social and Family Affairs, An Post's geo-directory and information supplied by local authorities through development plans. Growth projection figures are applied to existing population with a view to assessing future requirements at primary and post-primary levels. As a matter of course, there is ongoing liaison between the Department and local authorities to establish the location, scale and pace of any major proposed developments and their possible implications for school provision.

Applications from primary schools in the area referred to are being considered in the context of the Department's multi-annual school building and modernisation programme.

It should also be noted in this context that a review of the procedures for the establishment of new primary schools is currently being undertaken by the Commission on School Accommodation. A technical working group, under the direction of the chairman of the commission, has been established for this purpose. This working group has commenced its work and it is expected that it will be completed and recommendations made to the Minister before the end of this year.

In the interim it is not proposed to recognise any new schools except in areas where the increases in pupil numbers cannot be catered for in existing schools and which require the provision of new schools. This means that new schools will not be established for reasons not related to demographic growth in areas where there is already sufficient school accommodation or where increases can be catered for by extending existing school accommodation. It is proposed that locations where new schools are required for the coming years will be identified by the Department of Education and Science and the details circulated to all existing patron bodies.

This review does not mean that there will be a complete cessation of the school building programme outside areas of rapid growth. This year alone, almost €614 million will be spent on the school building programme. In addition to the establishment of new schools in areas of rapid population growth, the normal building programme of modernising, replacing or extending existing schools will continue.

The forward planning section will continue to monitor planned developments and population growth in the Roscommon town area to ensure that school accommodation needs are provided in a timely manner. I thank the Deputy once again for raising this matter.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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With all due respect, that is a load of rubbish.