John Cummins (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State to the House and thank him for taking this Commencement matter. I am disappointed the Minister for Education, Deputy Foley, is not here to take this Commencement matter but, that being said, I am sure the Minister of State has a response from the Department. If I require further information, I hope it will be forthcoming.

St. Paul's Community College is the only second level co-educational and multi-denominational school in Waterford city. In the past three years, it has seen strong growth. The number of students attending the school has increased by 33% in that period. Two years ago, it had 475 pupils. This figure increased to 575 last year and stands at 626 this year. The strong growth speaks to the need and demand for this type of school in Waterford city. I should declare an interest at this point. Prior to my election to Seanad Éireann, I was a physical education teacher at St. Paul's Community College for approximately eight years.

The school is located in close proximity to Waterford Institute of Technology. It is in a built-up residential area and on a public transport route. Geographically, it is well placed to support the growing Kilbarry and north-west suburbs of the city.Given all this, and the projected demand for secondary school places in Waterford city, I understand the Department of Education approached Waterford and Wexford Education and Training Board, ETB, about expanding St. Paul's Community College to a 1,000-pupil school to facilitate the lack of post-primary places. I would like to get an update on this today.

Progress needs to be made urgently on these plans because they have, or potentially could have, an impact on the immediate interim accommodation requirements for the school, given its current enrolment figures. If I take the interim needs first, which are required independently of the 1,000 pupil school requirement and specifications, St. Paul's Community College needs four general classrooms, a home economics room, a science lab and a fully-equipped woodwork room to Department specifications, and it needs these immediately. However, the school is expected to reach 850 pupils within the next five years, so in terms of the bigger picture, there is a conundrum here for the Department. A decision needs to be crystalised urgently because some of the interim accommodation needs may impact on the ability of the school to be modified to facilitate that further growth demand.

The reality is that we both know it can take a considerable amount of time to get projects from concept through to completion within the Department of Education. Therefore, I am concerned that any of the interim accommodation needs which are required may impact the ability to be able to complete a bigger project, which is required.

I would ask that an urgent meeting is arranged and that there is a visit to the school by the Department's building unit to scope out the works that are required now and in the short term in terms of the bigger project. I know from my knowledge of the school that it is a difficult site. While there is much space, the roof on the existing school is not standard in nature. Therefore, desktop exercise in an office in Dublin will not cut it. It needs to be done on the ground and with management to ascertain the full facts. That needs to be done as a matter of urgency.