Michelle Mulherin (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Minister of State, Deputy Halligan, is very welcome to the Seanad Chamber. I thank him for responding to this very important item. Newtownwhite national school is a rural school situated between Killala and Ballina and was in decline until September 2012 when under the patronage divestment process the patronage transferred from the Church of Ireland to Educate Together. It is safe to say that since then the school has gone from strength to strength. Next September the school will increase from 54 pupils this year to 60, which will allow it to have a third teacher. I commend the Church of Ireland authorities, the local bishop, the school community and in particular the staff and board of management for their great work. All of that is in spite of the fact that the school accommodation is poor. The school is old and its accommodation is substandard to the modern day needs we envisage pupils should enjoy. One can imagine their joy when they got the news six weeks ago that they will get new accommodation comprising two mainstream classrooms and a special education room. That will enhance their offering and free up existing classrooms which can be put to other use such as for storage and a PE hall.

That is good news. However, there is a problem which has been ongoing for years. At the time of the divestment the property was in the name of the Church of Ireland and, as I understand it, a lease must be drawn up between the Church of Ireland and the Department of Education and Skills to regularise the situation. The school cannot act on foot of the notification from the Department to provide additional accommodation. The Church of Ireland authorities have been waiting for years to get the lease sorted out and they are not happy for the project to continue without the lease being sorted. That is only as a last resort and I hope we will make progress and get some answers today.

I have been communicating with the office of the Minister, Deputy McHugh, and his predecessors for some time, inquiring about the reason the lease, which is a basic thing, has not been drawn up. What are the delays and obstacles? The school has no clear answers. I should also add that the school is on a constrained site but is has an offer of land immediately adjoining the school to expand it. The school community is not going to buy land when the title of the land it is on is not even sorted out. We all understand that is a basic requirement for the school to be able to continue and to grow. I would like some answers today and beyond that it would be a welcome relief to the staff, school community and parents if we could see some progress as they want their new accommodation to be built.