Dáil debates

Wednesday, 23 February 2022

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate

School Facilities

9:22 am

Photo of David StantonDavid Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I brought this up last week on Question Time and I was very pleased with the response the Minister gave at the time. The reason I brought it up was that a number of people in growing communities had contacted me because, now we have come out of the pandemic, many youngsters in some of these communities have nowhere to go in the evening time. I acknowledge a huge amount of work has been done, but the issue is that there are primary schools in these communities that are closed every evening at 3.30 p.m. My argument is these should be open and made available to the public. I acknowledge the circular that was issued in 2005. Much work was done by the Minister in 2017 and guidelines were issued at that stage. Much of the heavy lifting has been done. What I am arguing for is that these guidelines should be reissued. The Minister of State with responsibility for community development could engage with the Department of Education and with communities and add his voice to this issue to make these schools available. Many obstacles were identified in 2017 and responses put in place. I am looking forward to the Minister of State's response.

Photo of Richard BrutonRichard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

More flexible use of this infrastructure could release enormous potential in our communities, as Deputy Stanton has said. I can say, as a former Minister for Education who issued those guidelines, they simply have not delivered as we expected. The Department of Education now has to go further.

I suggest three things that should be done. First, the education and training boards, which are entirely within the State remit, should develop a best practice model of opening up their premises to flexible use in all sorts of areas such as childcare, youth work and so on. Second, all school patrons should have to provide, as an integral part and a condition of any application for an extension of their premises or improvement works, a policy on how they are going to open those facilities to wider use. That could be a very important nudge. Third, the Department of Education should work with other Departments to develop the campus concept with the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, and with the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media so that schools in our communities become genuine campuses of activities.

Photo of Ciarán CannonCiarán Cannon (Galway East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Ultimately our people look to us as policymakers to provide leadership in the area of enhancing community life and well-being in general. Our school facilities are funded by the State, by the taxpayer, and there is a dearth of provision in such areas as youth work and local community-based childcare and the provision of sports facilities. In recent months we have seen some interesting collaborations between schools and local sports clubs, supported through the sports capital grant scheme. We can leverage much of that in the future. There is a significant opportunity to build on that kind of collaboration. Ultimately, that needs school authorities and patrons to open their doors to local school communities.

Photo of Joe O'BrienJoe O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Green Party)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputies for raising this matter in regard to enabling access to school facilities for use by local community organisations and youth groups outside of school hours. Schools are very much valued in their communities in that they provide a vital link to sports and social activity but also to local heritage, and in rural areas they help sustain populations. Indeed rural schools make up the majority of our primary school sector. Nearly 2,000 out of just 3,200 of the State's primary schools are in rural areas. Schools are often the centre of community activity and there can be mutual benefits in building links with the local community. Indeed many schools recognise this and play an important role in the wider community and many schools make their facilities available outside of school hours for a variety of community and other activities.

As the Deputies may be aware, the policy of the Department of Education is that school premises and facilities should be used for community and recreational purposes, where possible. In October 2017, following consultation with the relevant school authorities, the Department published guidelines on the use of school buildings outside of school hours. The purpose of these guidelines is to provide information for schools in regard to the use of school buildings outside of school hours and for those schools that are considering putting such arrangements in place. Any decision to make school facilities available lies with the relevant trustees or property owners, having regard to the requirements of the school, staff and students.

My Department, through its policies and funding interventions, continues to support vibrant, inclusive and sustainable communities throughout Ireland. In regard specifically to playgrounds, public green space and public parks, which are all key to community well-being, the following supports are available. My Department provides funding for the development and upgrading of playgrounds under LEADER, CLÁR, and the community enhancement programme. The community enhancement programme provides small capital grants to community groups to enhance facilities, including playgrounds in disadvantaged areas. From 2018 to mid-2021, €29.7 million has been provided in funding for the community enhancement programme, supporting more than 10,000 community groups and organisations. Funding is allocated by my Department to each local authority area. The local community development committee, LCDC, with support from its local authority, administers the funding. Some €4.5 million was available in 2021, with €145,203 allocated to Mayo and €156,299 allocated to Cork, for example.

From my own Department's perspective, funding has been provided under the CLÁR programme for a range of measures to be delivered by schools and communities, including for the enhancement or development of play areas and multi-use games areas, MUGAs. The conditions attached to the CLÁR programme require that such facilities should be available for wider community use. In the case of schools, I appreciate that the use of play areas and MUGAs by the general community may need to be restricted to times outside of normal school hours. Many schools in CLÁR areas are willing to make their playground facilities available for community use and have received support under the programme on this basis. The objective is that these facilities would be available to local families and visitors to the area.

Under measure 2 of CLÁR 2021, €2.3 million in funding was provided to support outdoor community recreation facilities, including playgrounds. Emerging from this call, my Department recently announced funding for 20 playgrounds, both new and upgrades to existing playgrounds. We expect to launch the next round of CLÁR funding shortly.

LEADER can also fund the renovation of community centres, playgrounds and other community amenities, which play a very important role in community development. My Department is also responsible for a number of national policies containing measures to improve the lives of people throughout the country, including Our Rural Future, which places an emphasis on building resilience and enhancing participation and inclusion in rural communities. The availability of suitable spaces for use by local communities is an important element of supporting inclusion and participation.

9:32 am

Photo of David StantonDavid Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

We are all agreed on the principle that we should sweat the asset, for want of a better way of putting it, and that schools should be used outside of school hours as much as possible for all the activities communities need. I am particularly concerned about areas where there are no community facilities at all. A lot of such communities are growing. Even where there are community facilities, the adage, build it and they will come, applies.

I am involved in a community centre in my town of Midleton. We built a small centre and 1,000 people a week are using it. We are now putting on an extension, as more and more people want this kind of stuff to happen. Could I suggest to the Minister of State that an awards scheme would be put in place for schools that get involved in communities, a badge of honour, as it were? We need to be proactively involved. I ask that these guidelines would be reissued. We need to nudge schools that are not bothered or are worried and afraid because they probably want to do it as well and need encouragement and support. We are all on the same page here. I thank the Minister of State for his response. Let us move on with this.

Photo of Richard BrutonRichard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Parents are tearing their hair out for childcare facilities. I have a specific case in my area in Sutton where a school is expanding, and a childcare facility is being displaced. The Minister of State should speak to his colleague, the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Deputy O'Gorman, as well as the Minister for Education and advance the three proposals I made. Private patronage models served us well in the past, but community needs have moved on and we now have to develop a campus-style concept of how these facilities operate. The Minister of State is correct that patrons have the decision-making ability, but we must change that. The nudges must be put in place to make that change.

Photo of Ciarán CannonCiarán Cannon (Galway East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

It was an interesting statistic in the Minister of State's response that 2,000 of the 2,200 primary schools are located in rural areas. One of the key findings of a recent policy initiative from Fine Gael's policy lab on childcare is that there is a dearth of effective childcare provision predominantly in rural communities. I know that a number of school principals are very proactive in this area, but they are the exception rather than the rule. We need to highlight best practice and perhaps provide the administrative support for schools, for principals in particular, to make this happen. I support Deputy Stanton's request for the 2017 guidelines to issue again. This is exactly what we need to see happening.

Looking locally across my constituency in Galway East, at times it is a shame to see people being denied access to fine, state-of-the-art facilities provided in the past five to ten years, that are the pride of those school communities. That should not be happening. From engaging with the Galway and Roscommon Education and Training Board, I know that there is a very strong ethos in favour of throwing open the doors to these facilities to people across Galway East. I would again argue that is the exception rather than the rule and we must make it the norm in the future.

Photo of Joe O'BrienJoe O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Green Party)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the schools that are opening their doors and facilitating a variety of community groups. It happens quite a bit and many of us perhaps do not realise it happens because a lot of the activities are school related, for example homework clubs, breakfast clubs, summer camps and sporting and other activities. We almost assume that they are part of the school process, but they are very much a community function as well.

I would like to add my voice to the call that has been made. I ask schools to consider opening their doors even if they have concerns or are reluctant to do so. The document issued in 2017 is a pretty good one in terms of the guidelines on the use of school buildings outside of school hours. It outlines a comprehensive list of areas schools must be aware of and issues of which they should be cognisant if they are thinking of doing that. That said, on foot of Deputy Stanton's question last week, I have written to the Minister for Education, Deputy Foley, and asked for engagement on this issue. She said she will look into it and get back to me. We are actively looking into the matter.

I acknowledge Deputy Bruton's points about specific issues we can examine. I will take them away. We have a new capital fund for community centres and we expect that to be announced soon. It is all part of a range of measures that we as a Department implement in terms of supporting community spaces. The community services programme does a lot of work in that regard as well. I am very pleased to push this on further. I will also make contact with the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, because the matter is relevant to his Department also.