Lorraine Clifford Lee (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State at the Department of Education and Skills, Deputy Mary Mitchell O'Connor, for coming to the Chamber to discuss the urgent situation at St. Molaga's senior national school in Balbriggan. When I submitted this Commencement matter, may I point out that I used the following wording: "The need for the Minister for Education and Skills to fast-track the essential building works at St. Molaga's senior national school, Balbriggan, County Dublin." Unfortunately I have been in this Chamber on a number of occasions and raised the issue of St. Molaga's with the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Richard Bruton. I am very sorry and frustrated to be here again today with the Minister of State and her officials to discuss the dire situation in St. Molaga's senior national school.

St. Molaga's senior national school based in the town of Balbriggan, County Dublin, has 467 students, 28 teachers and six special needs assistants. For the past 18 years, the expanding school population has been housed in prefabs. Some 58% of the students in the school are housed in prefabs that are 18 years old and these prefabs are crumbling and are completely unfit for purpose. There are holes in these leaking prefabs which are damp and completely unacceptable. They have gone past their use by date. The state of disrepair is down to the age of the prefabs. The school itself has done its best to preserve the buildings so that the students could be housed for additional years. The prefabs are completely overcrowded, freezing cold in the winter and really hot in the summer time. The situation has become extremely urgent.

Last week during Storm Ali, four prefabs were evacuated and the children and their teachers had to take up residence in the corridors of the main building and in the school hall. The lids of two of the prefab water tanks were blown off and the school had to go into shutdown, meaning that more than half of the school could not access the main school building because they are in prefabs in another part of the site.

These old, damp, crumbling prefabs are posing a serious risk to the students and staff who operate out of them. As I said, more than half of the school population are housed in the prefabs. The students and teachers are constantly sick, they are getting chest infections, and students who suffer from asthma have been detrimentally affected by this situation. Students are at absolute breaking point. I know that prior to entering politics, Deputy Mitchell O'Connor was a principal-----

Mary Mitchell O'Connor (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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Two.

Lorraine Clifford Lee (Fianna Fail)
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-----of two primary schools. I thank the Minister of State for that correction. I am sure she will understand, in particular, the frustration faced by the very excellent principal of this school, who has done everything in her power to facilitate the Department and the learning environment for these students.

St. Molaga's senior national school is an excellent school. It has an excellent reputation in Balbriggan. It has an excellent teaching culture, an open welcoming policy and an excellent tradition in serving the people of Balbriggan. However, they feel completely neglected at this stage.

The extension to St. Molaga's was approved a number of years ago, but the principal hit a brick wall when she attempted to get any information whatsoever from the Department of Education and Skills on the timetable for the building work. As a result of sustained pressure, we eventually got a bit of progress last February when a technical team visited the school. Unfortunately, seven months later, we are no further along this path. The technical report is still awaited. We are now into another academic school year with predicted extreme weather conditions for the rest of the winter. I am very afraid, as is the principal, that the situation will get even worse. They are at breaking point.

I am asking the Minister of State to fast-track the work that has been approved for a long number of years. It needs to be given priority. The school is in a serious state of disrepair. I extend an invitation to the Minister of State to visit this excellent school and meet the principal in order that she can see for herself this excellent school that is housed in dire accommodation. Serious harm is being done to the pupils and all the staff in the school.

I am putting the Minister of State on notice of this very serious situation and the very serious risk to everybody involved in the school.

Mary Mitchell O'Connor (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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I thank Senator Clifford-Lee for raising this matter and I have a further update for her. I thank her very much for extending an invitation to visit St. Molaga's. I will certainly ensure that the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Bruton, is invited to visit. I am afraid that I will stick to my brief of higher education institutes, as I have more than enough to do there. However, I am sure he will visit the school.

A previous Commencement matter on this school was raised on 22 January 2018 and since then the technical site visit has taken place and the project brief for the proposed project at this school is in the final stages of completion. The draft prepared reflects this position. In addition, further temporary accommodation was approved to meet a deficit of accommodation for the existing staffing and enrolment levels. While that approval in principle issued to the school in January 2018, the school did not revert to the Department with the R1 form that is used for detailing tenders received until mid June.

Final approval issued from the Department on 17 July as additional information was required in respect of some cost in the interim period. The prefabs are in place. The Department of Education and Skills received a letter from the school yesterday, 25 September, advising of the damage caused to three prefabs by Storm Ali last week. As mentioned in the notes with the reply to the Commencement matter, the school is liaising with its insurance company in regard to fixing the damage.

Michelle Mulherin (Fine Gael)
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Senator Clifford-Lee has one minute to respond.

Lorraine Clifford Lee (Fianna Fail)
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We do not have an update on the position. There is a draft report. When will the school get sight of that draft report? What is the next stage? When will the next stage take place? When will St. Molaga's have its actual school building? This has been going on for far too long. The new prefab to which the Minister of State referred is to facilitate the reduction in the pupil-teacher ratio so that a few classes have gone into the new prefabs but the vast majority of the students and teachers are working out of these prefabs that are 18 years old, and beyond repair at this stage, despite the best efforts of the principal and staff. It is completely unacceptable for the situation to go on. They need the school building. Supplying additional new prefabs is putting a sticking plaster on the issue. It is not acceptable and it is costing more money. It is discommoding everybody in the school and they are at breaking point.

I am not happy at all with the Minister of State's answer.

Mary Mitchell O'Connor (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Senator. I certainly note her comments. Let me repeat that approval is there in principle. It was issued to the school in 2018. We had to wait for the R1 form which was sent in mid-June, some six months later. Final approval issued. Additional information is now required in respect of some of the cost in the interim period.

I understand that the situation with the prefabs is frustrating. There is a process that is open and transparent and it is there on the website. I would say to the Senator that she ensures that whatever is requested from the Department is sent in immediately.

Lorraine Clifford Lee (Fianna Fail)
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When will St. Molaga's get its school?

Mary Mitchell O'Connor (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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The notification about the damage caused by Storm Ail was received in the Department yesterday. The officials are working on it.

Lorraine Clifford Lee (Fianna Fail)
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When will St. Molaga's get its school?

Mary Mitchell O'Connor (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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When the process has been gone through.

Lorraine Clifford Lee (Fianna Fail)
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I understand that there is a process, but how quickly can we get the school?

Michelle Mulherin (Fine Gael)
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The Senator's time is up and we have another-----

Lorraine Clifford Lee (Fianna Fail)
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Can we fast-track the process?

Mary Mitchell O'Connor (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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That we waited six months for a reply from the school delayed the process.

Lorraine Clifford Lee (Fianna Fail)
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That related to the prefab.

Michelle Mulherin (Fine Gael)
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The Senator should please take her seat.

Lorraine Clifford Lee (Fianna Fail)
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The Minister of State's comment was disingenuous.

Mary Mitchell O'Connor (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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It is the information I have.

Michelle Mulherin (Fine Gael)
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The matter has concluded.