Fergal Browne (Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I welcome the Minister for Education and Science, Deputy Hanafin, to the House. I appreciate her coming here in person to deal with this Adjournment matter.

I telephoned the Minister's Department before Christmas to find out about the school building programme and was told that it would be announced on Christmas week. That did not happen, and I telephoned again in January and was told that it would be announced next month. Then to my surprise and annoyance I saw in the newspaper in January that the Minister had announced part of the programme, a characteristic of the Minister for better or worse. Her predecessor, Deputy Noel Dempsey, appears to have had a more straightforward system whereby he would announce the school building programme once a year. One could clearly see from the departmental website where schools were and where new ones were to go. The current Minister has a different system in place that may have both advantages and disadvantages.

At the time the Minister stated that a further phase of funding would be announced in the next few months. I ask that she give serious consideration to Bennekerry national school. No secondary or primary school from Carlow or Kilkenny was included in the funding announced in January. Deputy McGuinness, whom I respect and admire as a local politician, issued a statement to the effect that no school in Carlow or Kilkenny was ready to be included, a contention that was not correct. Numerous schools at pre-architectural stage await a cheque from the Department so that they can begin building. Among that number I include Scoil Mhuire Gan Smál in Carlow town, which has just celebrated its first anniversary. When Deputy Woods was the Minister for Education and Science, he came to the school for its 40th anniversary and made an announcement in front of the parents and me that he would be giving them a new school building, with work beginning very shortly. Unfortunately, six years later nothing has happened.

I will return to today's subject matter. I myself attended Bennekerry national school, where my father was principal for 27 years. The school has three distinct sections, the first dating to the 1930s, the second to the 1960s, and the third to the 1980s. It must be radically overhauled and extended. The school is short of space and management hopes to reach an agreement with the local landowner to expand the playground and so on.

The school is growing rapidly. It is situated four miles outside Carlow town, where I know the Minister has relations, and she may be familiar with the area. The school is under serious pressure, and we have drawn up a new plan for Palatine Village, which sends children to the school. The village will be developing very rapidly in coming years. Carlow town has now expanded so far that the new estates on its outskirts are inthe Bennekerry catchment area, including Chapelstown Gate, and, of course, they all have children.

The school is therefore coming under increasing pressure, and those involved are waiting for work to begin. There was a slight problem when the autism school in Carlow was to be linked with Bennekerry national school. For various reasons that did not work out and it delayed matters. I do not believe there was any bad faith on the part of the Department at the time, but a former inspector was trying to do a two-in-one job that unfortunately did not work out.

I ask that Bennekerry national school be included in approval for the next phase of funding for the school building programme. Those involved have been waiting for many years, and in fairness to the staff and students, they deserve better facilities than they currently enjoy.

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I thank Senator Browne for raising the issue of Bennekerry national school, Carlow. The Senator is right in saying that I do not make a single announcement each year, since that would be very unfair on all the schools in the country. There are 4,000 of them, and it would be wrong if they got an opportunity to make their case only once a year. Spreading the various announcements over the year gives schools a chance to advance their projects at different times. We are now spending approximately €500 million on capital funding. With 4,000 schools, it is obviously not easy to get them all done at the same time. However, everyone will acknowledge that with the investment that has gone in over the last few years, €500 million a year is not a small amount.

We are doing two things. First, we are trying to meet the needs of emerging populations, as the Senator has said and second, we are addressing a legacy of decades of under-investment in the area. One must consider that some of the schools can be 150 years old, and they must also be looked after. We are determined to continue to provide the best facilities for our schools.

The Senator referred to the announcement made in January and expressed his disappointment that the school was not included. I announced 54 primary schools and eight post-primary schools that would then appoint design teams, allowing them to start architectural planning for building and modernisation work on their schools. Bennekerry national school is already at the stage of architectural planning and therefore did not belong on that list, which was for new schools entering the building programme. Bennekerry is already in that programme, and it was not necessary to list it.

We intend the refurbishment of current accommodation and an extension to provide appropriate accommodation for the long-term projected staffing of a principal and nine mainstream teachers. It is already at the stage of architectural planning in the Department and included in the building programme and it will now advance. The submission is being considered in the building unit for the next stage, after which we will immediately get in touch with the school to allow it to progress.

We are not in the business of holding back schools in the building programme, since we are anxious to ensure that schools in every county get the facilities and modernisation that they deserve. I am sure that the Senator will accept our goodwill on this issue, since the school is already included in the building programme.

Fergal Browne (Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I thank the Minister for her reply. The problem is that the school has been stuck on the first three stages for some time. It does not seem to be progressing and would like to move ahead. Perhaps the Minister might agree to meet representatives of the school. I will write to her privately on that afterwards. They will be very grateful to put their case to her.

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

The school is already in the building programme, and there is no need.

Fergal Browne (Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

It is in it.