Gaelscoil Philib Barún
Campaign

Cruinniú leis an Aire, Jan O’Sullivan|Meeting with Minister, Jan O’Sullivan

Ar an Déardaoin an 6ú lá Samhain 2014, fuarthas an deis labhairt go beacht le Jan O Sullivan, an tAire Oideachais ó Iúil 2014. Bhí Jan sa chondae le scoileanna nua a oscailt agus ní raibh ach 15 nóim againn lenár gcás a chur chuici. Chuaigh Daithí de Paor, Príomhoide, John Wall, Bord Bainistíochta, agus mé féin Clare Ogilvie, Cathaoirleach Choiste na dTuistí, go Dúngarbhán le bualadh leis an Aire agus le fiafraí di cén fath go bhfuilimid de shíor fágtha amach as liostaí tógála le haghaidh foirgnimh bhuana bíodh go sroichimid gach critéir leagtha síos ag oifig an Aire.

Labhair Daithí le eolas agus go hionraic faoi chomhfhreagas caite lena hoifigí agus staid reatha na seomraí reamhdhéanta agus an dochar a deanadh dóibh an geimhreadh seo caite. Luaigh Daithí chomh maith na scoileanna eile a tógadh le bliain anuas fiú cinn nach raibh luaite ar aon liosta “réamhfhaofa” gur oibríomar go dícheallach le bheith áirithe iontu. Ni raibh an tAire ar eolas faoi seo ach más ann dóibh cén fáth nach ann sinn?

Mhaígh an tAire Ui Shuilleabhán bíodh go raibh sí nua sa ról agus nach raibh ‘ “airgead ar fáil di faoi láthair”, go raibh drochstaid na scoile luaite léi cheana féin ag Ciara Conway, a bhí i lathair chomh maith. Tá a fhios aici go bhfuilimid ag fanacht fad ama inghlactha agus d’fhiafraigh sí den ghrúpa faoi chritéir deimeagraifeach, stíl fhoirgnimh agus ar eile. Is cóir a rá gur éist sí go cúramach le gach pointe ardaithe léi:

  • Easpa áiseanna halla.
  • Daltaí teanntaithe ina seomraí ranga nuair atá sé fliuch.
  • An méid airgid cháiníocóra atá caite in aisce ar sheomraí réamhdhéanta a thógfadh scoil bhuan.
  • Na huimhreacha ag iarraidh teacht go dtí an scoil agus go bhfuil na ranganna nach mór lán.
  • Go bhfuil daonra an bhaile dúbailte le déanaí.

Tá an suíomh ar líne radhairc suntasach agus bíodh go bhfuil an Roinn tar eis scoileanna eile a thógails abhaile le cúig bhliana anuas níl aon “phoibliocht dhearfach” ag eascair as an dtógail seo mar a bhí á lorg le linn an toghcháin aitiúil.

D’ardaiomar go bhfuil Scoil Educate Together nua oscailte le bliain anuas sa Trá Mhór. Le fás na scoileanna den saghas seo mhaíomar go bhféadfadh sé tarlúint go dtarlódh comhnascadh eatrthu agus gnáthbhunscoileanna tuata ach nach féidir freastal ar éileamh ar scoil teangan ach tré Ghaelscoil a sheasfaidh go fada buan dá bharr tuata nó neamhtuata. Mhaígh Ciara Conway go raibh an scoil againne mar an scoil is uileghabhalaí sa bhaile.

An fhíric is dearfaí a bhain mé as an gcruinniú ná bíodh gurbh é “líne an phairtí” ná go fógrófaí liosta nua scoileanna le tógail níos gaire don toghchán 2016 gur súil leis an Aire scoileanna le príoracht ard a fhógairt i 2015. Agus mar a luaigh sí táimid tar eis a rá léi go ríshoiléir gur mhian linn a bheith ar liosta príorachta.

Claire Ogilvie,
Cathaoirleach Choiste na dTuistí.

On Thursday 6th November 2014, an opportunity was given to speak briefly to Jan O’Sullivan who has been the minister for Education since July 2014. Jan was in the county to open a new school and we had basically a 15 min time slot to state our case with her. Daithi De Paor, John Wall and myself Claire Ogilvie went to Dungarvan to meet with the minister to ask why are we being continuously overlooked for a permanent building despite meeting all the criteria set out by the ministers office.

Daithi spoke with knowledge and conviction in regards to the past communications with her offices and the current state of the pre-fabs and the battering they received last winter. Daithi gave a good run down of other schools that have been built in the past year including some which never appeared on any of the “pre-approved” lists that we have laboured to be included on. The Minister was unaware of this but obviously if this can happen for others then why not for us?

Minister O’Sullivan did state that although she was new to the role,and that “she did not funds available to her at present”, the schools plight had been highlighted to her already by Ciara Conway who was also in attendance. She is aware that we have been waiting an unacceptable length of time and asked the group questions about demographic criteria, style of building etc. It would be fair to say that she listened diligently to the many points that were made to her:

  • Lack of hall facilities.
  • Children having to stay in their classrooms at lunchtime when it rains.
  • The amount of taxpayers funds that have been spent on the existing prefab would now equal what that cost is of a new build.
  • The numbers wanting to attend the school are high and the school is almost at full capacity.
  • The population of the town has doubled in recent years.
  • The school is in a prominent sight line of all who enter the town and although the department has built new schools in the town over the past 5 years they are certainly not getting any “positive publicity” like what was campaigned for in the last local elections.

We also brought up the fact that an educate together school has been established in Tramore in the past year. We made the point that in the future it would not be unrealistic to assume that existing religious schools nationwide would either merge with educate together facilities or convert to the system. However the Gaelscoil is a language school primarily and will always be stand alone whether secular or not, and will therefore always need its own permanent place in the community. Ciara Conway also highlighted at this stage that for the size of the Gaelscoil it was the most inclusive school in the town.

Possibly the one point of positivity that I took from the meeting was that although the party line is for the next list of “new build schools” to be announced in bulk later next year (closer to the election year of 2016), it is her wish that a handful of priority school’s be announced early in 2015. And as she said we have made it very clear to her that we are wish to be on that priority list.

Claire Ogilvie,
Chairperson, Parents Association.