Seanad debates

Tuesday, 7 June 2011

5:00 am

Photo of Brian Ó DomhnaillBrian Ó Domhnaill (Fianna Fail)
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Go raibh maith agat, a Leas-Chathaoirligh, for the opportunity to raise the issue of Gortahork national school and its current position in the Department's school building programme. The construction of a new school building for Gortahork national school has been an ongoing issue for more than ten years, with successive boards of management endeavouring to progress the purchase of a site for a new school in the village of Gortahork.

Gortahork is a small village, but the current school accommodation is totally unsuitable to meet the needs of the children who attend the school. Progress had been made by the Department of Education and Skills to provide a new school on a new site. Various meetings took place between previous Ministers and officials from the Department and members of the board of management and its chairman, Fr. Seán Ó Gallchóir, about the project. Unfortunately, however, it has hit a difficulty. The planning application submitted by the Department and probably prepared by the Office of Public Works was refused by Donegal County Council.

There were a number of reasons for the refusal. A number of meetings took place both before and after the planning application reached the further information stage between planning staff in Donegal County Council, the council's road engineers, the national roads design office and officials from both the OPW and the Department of Education and Skills. The advice given by both the planning office and the roads office of Donegal County Council was that while it welcomed the planning application and it met all planning conditions, there were road safety concerns. The clear advice given to the OPW and the Department by local authority staff was to make amendments to the application to improve the road safety conditions. This would result in improved road safety conditions for the young children at the new school.

I am not sure why the Department of Education and Skills did not take the advice. Following the meetings and the extension of time there was no subsequent information submitted by the Department. Instead, it let the three month time extension for the provision of further information to run out. Donegal County Council had no option but to refuse the planning application. One of the recommendations from the Department appears to be that it would now be in a position to seek the acquisition of additional lands, to negotiate the purchase of these lands and to prepare a new planning application, taking account of the improved safety conditions at the school. While this is good, it delays the bureaucracy of getting the planning approval process to the next phase and the school built.

The board of management wrote to the Department of Education and Skills on 26 April and made a number of suggestions. It asked the Department to take immediate steps to procure the site. It has not yet been bought because the new site for the school will only be bought subject to planning permission. The site is under question also in terms of whether it will be available and whether the owner will continue to make it available to the Department indefinitely. There has to be some response by the Department, given that it let Donegal County Council make the decision to refuse the application.

The board of management has made three suggestions. The first is that the Department of Education and Skills go ahead and buy the site identified by the OPW as the most suitable in the village. Second, it should enter into negotiations with the landowner, whose small additional portions of land are necessary to improve road safety conditions in respect of the new application. Third, the boards has suggested that the Department and the OPW once again meet the National Roads Authority, the Donegal national road design office and the planning and roads sections of Donegal County Council to renegotiate ahead of any new planning application proceeding.

I fear that the Department of Education and Skills will put the application on the long finger and that it will not progress as quickly as it did previously. I am seeking an update from the Minister of State. What assurances can he give to the House and the board of management that the site will be purchased by the Department and that a new planning application will be prepared in line with the new portions of land that must be purchased to improve the road safety conditions set out by Donegal County Council?

Photo of Ciarán CannonCiarán Cannon (Galway East, Fine Gael)
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I am replying to this Adjournment matter on behalf of my colleague, Deputy Ruairí Quinn, Minister for Education and Skills. I thank the Senator for raising it, as it affords me the opportunity to outline to the Seanad the process being utilised to ensure there will be adequate accommodation in schools at primary and post-primary level in all parts of the country.

The Government, in its programme for Government, is committed to drawing up a new national development plan that reflects Ireland's changed economic circumstances, covering the seven-year period 2012-19. The plan will be based on a comprehensive study of Ireland's public investment priorities in that period. In the initial years, when resources will be most heavily constrained, the programme for Government commits to prioritising investment in a number of specific areas, including school buildings. Modernising facilities in our existing building stock, as well as responding to the emerging needs in areas of rapid population growth, will continue to be a significant challenge.

All applications for capital funding are assessed in the planning and building unit of the Department of Education and Skills. The assessment process determines the extent and type of need presenting, based on the demographics of an area, proposed housing developments, condition of buildings, site capacity and so forth, leading to an appropriate accommodation solution. As part of this process, a project is assigned a band rating under published prioritisation criteria for large-scale building projects. These criteria were devised following consultation with the education partners.

A project to provide new accommodation for Scoil Náisiúnta Ghort an Choirce has been assigned a band 2.2 rating under the published prioritisation criteria for large-scale building projects. The acquisition of the site was initiated by the Department of Education and Skills in conjunction with the Office of Public Works. Following a process to locate and identify possible sites for a new school building, one site was chosen as the site which offered best potential as the location of a new building for the school in question. As is standard in such cases, the contracts signed for the site made it clear that the acquisition of the site was subject to planning permission being obtained for the construction of a suitable school building on the site.

A planning application for a school building was prepared and submitted to Donegal County Council, the planning authority for the area. The application was not successful and planning permission for the development of a school building on the site was refused by the planning authority. I understand the planning authority has indicated that extensive works to the road network outside the curtilage of the proposed site would be required to make it suitable for development of this nature. In the circumstances, the Department instructed its legal advisers to seek to rescind the existing contract for the acquisition of this site and to request the return of the deposit moneys paid. The deposit moneys have been returned to the Chief State Solicitor's office within recent days and it will be arranging for the moneys to be transferred to the Department.

The next step required in this process will now be reviewed in the light of these developments and taking account of the current competing demands on the capital budget of the Department and the increased demographic demands for additional school accommodation. The school authority was advised last week, by letter, of the position.

Photo of Brian Ó DomhnaillBrian Ó Domhnaill (Fianna Fail)
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I am bitterly disappointed with the response. An internal memo sent by a Department official to the then Minister for Education and Skills, Mary Coughlan, on 12 January 2011, outlined three options for the project. The final option, the least favourable, although it is preferable to the response tonight, was that if planning was refused - it was - the Department of Education and Skills would at least be in a better position to seek acquisition of the additional land and to renegotiate the purchase price to current market conditions. The Department stated in January it would look at purchasing the additional lands and renegotiating the purchase price under current market conditions and would look at preparing a new planning application. Tonight the House was informed the proposed site for the school is off the agenda and the next step will now be reviewed. What does that mean? It certainly gives no comfort to the school or the board of management. It is a worrying development and I ask the Minister of State to go back to the Department and look at the school again given so much effort has been made by the board of management to bring this project to fruition. If possible, could the Department officials visit the school, meet the board of management and look at the additional land needed? Subject to that land being available and a price agreed, the school could then lodge a new planning application with the county council. If this is let drag on, I fear for the future of the project, which is crucial to the educational needs of the pupils and teachers in the school.

Photo of Ciarán CannonCiarán Cannon (Galway East, Fine Gael)
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I will take on board the points the Senator has made. If he wishes to contact my office directly, I will raise the matter with the building unit again. My reading of the response is that the building unit has concluded that the site is no longer suitable for the development of a school, irrespective of what works are done outside the curtilage of the site. We may have to look at other sites locally. I will work with the Senator to try to arrive at a different conclusion while being mindful of the competing demands on the Department's resources.

The Seanad adjourned at 6.35 p.m. until 10.30 a.m. on Wednesday, 8 June 2011.