Paudie Coffey (Fine Gael)

I thank the Minister of State for attending to hear this Adjournment matter which I am glad to share with my colleague, Senator Maurice Cummins. He has outlined the proud tradition of Mount Sion primary school in the heart of the inner city in Waterford which has provided an essential educational service for the boys of that area for many generations. The nub of the issue concerns the enrolment figures. From September to November 2008, as my colleague stated, there were 346 pupils enrolled, just one short of the prescribed number that would allow the school to retain its full complement of mainstream teachers. A month later, in December 2008, the school had in excess of 347. The enrolment figures that were returned to the Department contained one too few, but since then the figures have increased. The enrolment for 2009 is 358 pupils.

It defies logic that common sense cannot prevail on this occasion. This is an area in which we can restore faith in politics and politicians. The Minister of State, Deputy Andrews, is not the Minister for Education and Science but he has responsibility for children and young people and I know he has a deep understanding of the effect that this move to reduce the number of teachers in Mount Sion primary school will have across the range of classes, numbering more than 350 pupils. This is an occasion where politicians can make a difference and can step in and intervene with the bureaucrats. If the bureaucrats maintain that these children are to be treated according to the statistics, all of them will suffer because every class in Mount Sion primary school will have more than 30 pupils, and that is unacceptable. As Senator Cummins noted, a significant percentage of the pupils are non-national in origin. In addition, the school is disadvantaged and for that reason alone it has many pupils with special educational needs and learning difficulties. It is important, therefore, that the number of class teachers is kept at a viable level so that all pupils can receive the education they deserve.

I shall offer one example. The school turned away two families that wished to enrol their sons in sixth class for this school year. It did this on the basis that there were already 30 children in the class. If it had been known these new ratios were to be introduced the school would have enrolled the boys but because it was not, Mount Sion will lose the extra class teacher.

I appeal to the Minister of State to request the Minister for Education and Science to allow common sense to prevail, to let politics prevail over bureaucracy and statistics and allow Mount Sion school to maintain the number of teachers it has. They do a marvellous job - I cannot over-emphasise the job they do - in inner-city Waterford in a large area of disadvantage in education. I appeal to the Minister of State and am hopeful he will give me a positive response. If not, I hope, in his role as Minister of State with responsibility for children and young people, he will take the issue further with the Minister for Education and Science so that this school in inner-city Waterford will receive the support it deserves.