An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business
Seanad Éireann — 2026-05-20
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Aubrey McCarthy (IND), University of Dublin

I thank the Cathaoirleach for welcoming my guests from St. Patrick's National School in Greystones. Today, we had a special event. The team from St. Patrick's addressed us in the audiovisual room. Many of my colleagues were there. The team is led by Ms Rachel Harper, whom I have known for many years. She brought some fantastic guests, children from the school, with her. They shared how smartphones impact the younger generation. They shared that in their school, they have all signed up to a code. The code is that they do not receive a smartphone until a certain age.
Each individual then shared about their own lives and what it meant to them. We had Bodie, Jack, Rachel, Jamie and Lori. Bodie shared how he started collecting coins. He has a coin collection that is worth a lot of money. He is certainly one to watch. Lori, who is the quietest but strongest one, is going to play for Ireland. She certainly has prowess when it comes to soccer. Jack shared about his swimming medals and all of that. What it showed was that we have a national school in our midst that is hitting the ball out of the park when it comes to dealing with smartphones and how they impact the younger generation.
I have talked previously in this House about Tiglin and its Greystones Youth Café. It Takes a Village has partnered with the youth café. Now we have the coffee machines and pizza machines, but we also have open mic nights, different craft days and homework clubs for the children. It Takes a Village is something to watch. An Tánaiste has said it is something that can be mirrored and replicated throughout the country. I commend Rachel Harper, Alizia, Alex, Christine and the people who are here today and are championing the project. This House supports them.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-05-20/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:58+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-05-20