Ó Ríordáin calls for “overhaul” of Deis system

Mike Finnerty 02 Aug 2023

Labour Party TD and education spokesperson Aodhán Ó Ríordáin has called on the Department of Education to overhaul the Deis system “immediately”.

Ó’Ríordáin, who served as a teacher and principal prior to his career in politics, said that principals have warned the current policy is “flawed” owing to the broadened nature of the Deis system.

They say that schools that are not recognised by the system are not granted extra supports in impoverished school communities.

Between 40 and 100 primary schools in areas that are considered “very disadvantaged” across Ireland would benefit from a new designation under the Deis scheme, according to the principals.

Ó Ríordáin remarked the Government was “well able to tell us what tax cuts they want” and criticised a lack of calls concerning the scheme among Government ministers.

Despite Education Minister Norma Foley expanding Deis to the tune of €32m, the Labour TD said the funding does not tackle the “acute disadvantage” highlighted by principals.

“What the principals in Ballymun, Tallaght, and my own constituency are calling for is a no-brainer and should be responded to immediately.”

“I don’t understand why they have to campaign around it, they’re not asking for the world, they’re asking for very basic interventions,” he said.

According to Ó Ríordáin, the recently announced OECD review of Deis was not proactive enough in addressing the issue, with Ó’Ríordáin saying “I don’t see why we have to wait for a review to deal with these principals are saying.”

The Dublin Bay North TD said “nothing has changed” since he was a Deis principal in Dublin’s northeast inner city, and said that schools in the area are still trying to deal with intergenerational trauma.

Ó’Ríordáin cited the case of a principal in Tallaght who has had to change the route children walk to swimming lessons as “they’re afraid of being caught in the crossfire of a feud.”

“When it comes to conversations around crime, we always seem to have the cynical response of more guards, and that’s fine but these types of interventions are the ones that actually will make a difference in the long term,” he said.

A spokesperson for the Department of Education said Minister Foley was “aware of several proposals from different groups of principals, while officials have met with people from a number of schools.”

“In the context of work to ensure that schools are resourced to support all children to achieve their potential, officials from the department are arranging follow-up consultations, which will involve the minister, to learn more about the diverse range of issues at hand and initiatives that the schools have in place in order to inform future policy,” the spokesperson said.