Lack of school places criticised 

Aoife O’Brien

A NORTHSIDE councillor has accused the Government of not treating the lack of secondary school places in Skerries as a priority.

Cllr Seána Ó Rodaigh (Lab), who represents the Balbriggan Local Electoral Area (LEA) on Fingal County Council, said there is an ongoing issue of many children living in Skerries being unsuccessful in securing a place in the town’s only post-primary school.

Currently there are 66 children on a waiting list for a place in September 2020. This figure is more than double the number of students who were denied a place at Skerries Community College last year.

“Last year the students who were denied a place were able to attend a secondary school in a neighbouring town but those schools are all full now,” Cllr Ó Rodaigh told Northside People.

“Children can’t even get on a waiting list for schools in neighbouring towns anymore because they don’t meet the criteria.”

According to Cllr Ó’Rodaigh this highlights the lack of planning by the Government.

“This is an issue that is making people extremely angry because it is exposing the lack of forward thinking by the Government,” she said.

This situation has been a ticking time bomb, according to Cllr Ó Rodaigh.

“I’m a teacher so I know the stats we have to send into the Government. They knew these kids started junior infants eight years ago so they were well aware that the secondary schools would not have the capacity to cope with them,” she said.

Cllr Ó Rodaigh believes the Government’s fast-tracked planning scheme is partly responsible for the shortages in school places across north Dublin.

“Since the Government fast-tracked planning applications for large-scale developments it has been taken out of council hands,” she said.

“We have no say in the fact that there is no social infrastructure there for these houses to be built and it’s going to get worse and worse because there is no joined up thinking that if you are going to build these houses there are going to be children in them who need education.”

Cllr Ó Rodaigh now fears that no emergency accommodation will be put in place to increase the capacity in the school.

If this happens, she said it will come to August and children, not only in Skerries but in the surrounding towns, will have nowhere to go to school and could miss out on months of education.

In April 2018 the Government announced plans for the establishment of 42 new schools in the next four years.

Skerries was not included in this announcement.

However, despite this, the Department of Education and Skills say they are aware of the enrolment issues in Skerries.

They have approved a permanent extension consisting of three general classrooms, three special education teaching offices, science laboratory and prep area, art room and toilets.

Pending the delivery of this extension they have also approved interim temporary accommodation which is expected to be in place for September 2020.

Meanwhile, Minister for Education and Skills Joe McHugh visited St Joseph’s Secondary School in Rush recently where he witnessed first-hand the condition of the premises.

Minister McHugh met with members of the Board of Management, including Chairperson, Senator Dr James Reilly, to hear the issues students in the school are facing.