Michael Noonan (Limerick East, Fine Gael)
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Question 343: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if her attention has been drawn to the fact that over 80 children who applied for secondary school places in Limerick in accordance with the scheme negotiated with her predecessor have been allocated no place, despite listing five schools in order of preference; the action she will take to ensure that they are offered appropriate places in secondary school; her views on the manner in which the scheme in question has operated this year; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6654/05]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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I am aware of the situation which arose in Limerick recently where 87 children did not receive an offer of a place in any of their preferred schools in the first round of offers from the city schools. However, it is important to point out that the process did not conclude with the first round offers. The school authorities continued to meet in an effort to place all applicants. I am happy to inform the Deputy that following a further meeting on Friday, 25 February 2005, all 87 children have now been offered places in a school of their preference on the basis of their original application.

However, the Deputy is incorrect in stating that the central applications scheme was negotiated with my predecessor. Following difficulties that arose in Limerick city around the placement of pupils in second level schools in 2004, the then Minister convened a meeting of all the schools involved and received a commitment that the schools would seek to resolve the issues by co-operating with one another for the 2005-06 school year.

The centralised application system was agreed between the principals of the post-primary schools in the area. Limerick Education Centre agreed to administer the centralised application system on behalf of the post-primary schools. My Department was not involved in the design or operation of the system.

If, at the conclusion of the process, parents are unhappy with the place which has been offered they have a right of appeal under Section 29 of the Education Act against each school for which they expressed a preference and in which they were not offered a place. Parents have been advised to contact the schools which may have refused them a place in order to determine if there are grounds on which they feel an appeal could be pursued.