John Paul Phelan (Fine Gael)
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I, too, welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Gallagher. He indicated the Minister is unavoidably absent but there are at least three if not four Ministers of State in the Department of Education and Science. While I have no problem with the Minister of State, Deputy Gallagher, being here, it is disappointing on a night when both Adjournment matters relate to education that none of the Ministers of State from the Department of Education and Science can be here. That is surprising and disappointing and it is not the most suitable arrangement given the matters raised, but that is a matter that will have to be taken up in a different forum.

I rise to bring up another educational issue. This is another example of where a Department has let down a community, similar to the case outlined by Senator Buttimer. The issue I raise relates to secondary education in the town of New Ross and the surrounding hinterland of Wexford, Kilkenny and south County Carlow. I attended secondary school in New Ross, along with my four siblings, as do many people on the Kilkenny side of the bridge that joins Wexford and Kilkenny. There are five secondary schools in New Ross. When I left Good Counsel College in 1997 the process of discussion on amalgamation and consolidation for the future was already under way.

The McCarthy report was published five years ago and it outlined a blueprint for the future of second level education in the town of New Ross. However, that report has not been acted upon. The recommendations of the report were clear, namely, that there would be three secondary schools, one all-boys, one all-girls and one co-educational. Since the publication of the report there was a massive explosion in the population of the town of New Ross, as has happened in many areas across the country.

I read recently a surprising statistic in a national newspaper, that outside of the city of Dublin the district electoral division with the highest proportion of immigrants in the country is Rosbercon urban. This area is on the Kilkenny side of the bridge from New Ross and one of the existing secondary schools is located here. A significant case can be made for the provision of four schools as a possible solution to future needs in this area.

Despite the recommendations of the report and various meetings of school trustees in that five year period, not one iota of progress has been made. What is most disappointing is that as a result of the McCarthy report and the push by the Department of Education and Science to force the hand of the trustees and the schools in question to amalgamate, there has been a complete freeze on capital investment in the secondary schools in New Ross which is leading to a very unsatisfactory situation within those schools. Basic maintenance work has not been carried out because the schools are not funded by the Department.

Good Counsel College is only 20 years old but a problem recently developed in the art room where part of the floor collapsed. The Augustinians who still run the school had to pay for patching the floor out of their household fund. That is disgraceful. Something has to be done. I plead with the Department and the Minister for Education and Science in this regard. There are more than 2,000 second level students in New Ross, a large number in a town of approximately 7,000 or 8,000 people. A large hinterland surrounds the town. There are more than 2,100 students in second level education in the town of New Ross and these people are being disenfranchised and neglected because their school facilities have not been upgraded in the past five years. They are being placed at a severe disadvantage through no fault of their own by the efforts of the Department to bully the schools into amalgamation.

Everybody in the town and its schools accepts changes must be made and there is a strong case for amalgamation. Therefore let us make some progress on it. Second level education in New Ross and its hinterland has had five years of stagnation and limbo. I seek leadership from the Department on this issue. It cannot be allowed to drag on any longer. Students have entered and left second level education under this cloud of the McCarthy report and the lack of capital investment in the schools' infrastructure in New Ross and that is not satisfactory. I urge the Department to resolve that situation as soon as possible.

Pat Gallagher (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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I thank Senator John Paul Phelan for raising this matter as it provides me with the opportunity to outline to the Seanad the position on second level education infrastructure in New Ross town. I do so on behalf of the Minister for Education and Science, Deputy Hanafin. There are five post primary schools in New Ross. Applications for major capital investment from each of the schools, against a backdrop of declining enrolments, prompted a review of infrastructural provision in the area which was extended to include its primary schools. In view of the scale of the review being carried out, Dr. Tom McCarthy was appointed as a facilitator to consult with the local providers and to identify the key issues in primary and post primary provision in the area.

In his report Dr. McCarthy recommended a reduction at post primary level to three schools each catering for 720 pupils, which would provide accommodation and facilities for the 2,100 pupils to which Senator Phelan referred. The schools were to comprise one single sex girls' school, one single sex boys' school and one co-educational school. Subsequently the school planning section of the Department prepared a discussion paper for the trustees of both the primary and post primary schools to progress the matter further. Given the intervening period since Dr. McCarthy's report and the change in demographics etc., the purpose of the paper was to put forward for discussion the Department's view on how best the primary and post primary educational infrastructural needs of New Ross could be met into the future.

The paper recommended the five post primary schools should be rationalised to provide three schools each catering for 500 mainstream pupils. It also recommended the VEC should continue to cater for PLC and VTOS students and its accommodation should be augmented to cater for enrolment on approved Department courses. It further recommended enrolment policies should be put in place by all schools to ensure pupils from the catchment area are given preference and that this should be a condition of capital investment. Discussions are ongoing among the trustees on these findings.

Senator Phelan will appreciate this is a complex matter for the schools concerned given the structure of the individual schools and the fact that the town falls into two different parishes in two different dioceses and two different county council areas of functionality. When the trustees have completed their discussions and the Department is made aware of the outcome, consideration will be given to capital investment in the area under the school building and modernisation programme. Rationalisation projects attract a band one rating under my Department's prioritisation criteria for large scale building projects. This is the highest priority rating possible. I have heard the Senator's argument and will bring the strongly held views he enunciated here this evening to the attention of the Minister for Education and Science, Deputy Hanafin, at the earliest opportunity.

John Paul Phelan (Fine Gael)
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Deputy Gallagher gave as good an answer as he could. In the early part of his answer he referred to three schools catering for 720 pupils each and in the second part he said the school planning section's discussion paper recommended three schools catering for 500 each. At the beginning of his reply the Minister of State referred to declining enrolments. There has been a large increase in enrolments in the past few years in New Ross. Despite the fact that it seems the school planning section is talking about declining enrolments, that is not the case. Enrolments have grown in recent years. The catchment area of New Ross extends to three parishes, diocese and county council areas. I think there is a tiny piece of south county Carlow around St. Mullins. I stand to be corrected on that.

The Minister of State referred to the ongoing discussion between the trustees, but that has been ongoing for five years. While he cannot solve it here tonight, it must be brought to a head because there are significant problems in the secondary schools. The buildings need investment or they will become dilapidated. I ask the Department to get involved in bringing it to a positive resolution for the students. This has dragged on since the McCarthy report five years ago. That must be unsatisfactory to all concerned. I would welcome it if Deputy Gallagher could bring my concerns on this issue to the attention of the Minister for Education and Science. New Ross has been badly neglected on this issue.

Pat Gallagher (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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I will do that.