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Seanad Éireann · 2024-04-11

Schools Building Projects

GP Joe O'Brien · Dublin Fingal · Minister of State at the Department of Rural and Community Development

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Summary of this debate

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A request for emergency works to fix a roof that now has more than 101 roof leaks and defects was submitted to the Department in September 2022. In addition to the roof, the school has submitted an emergency works scheme application to replace a heating system that has stopped working. The first application refers to a funding request from the school for roof works.

A site visit was facilitated by members of the Department’s professional and technical team who work with the Department’s emergency works team, and it was agreed that a leak detection test would be conducted as part of the application. The leak detection test and the accompanying report were received very recently and are currently under active assessment by the emergency works team, which will continue to engage with the school as appropriate in respect of the next step for this application.

Built by scoring every sentence in the debate on how distinctive its language is, then quoting the highest-scoring ones back word for word and in the order spoken. Nothing is paraphrased or invented — if a sentence appears here, it was said in the chamber. Drawn from 620 words across 8 contributions by 3 speakers.

Most used terms in this debate

How often each word appears across the whole debate, ranked by how distinctive it is to this debate rather than common to all parliamentary language.

school 22
roof 11
works 17
emergency 15
application 11
leak 4
department 16
detection 4
education 8
team 6
pipework 2
boiler 2

The full debate

All 8 contributions, start to finish, in the order they were made. The one you came here for is highlighted.

FG Emer Currie

I am here today to raise the circumstances of a school that has been incredibly patient with the Department of Education. If this was an exercise in doing everything by the book, with the expectation and trust that based on need alone the Department would deliver then I am afraid it has failed. A request for emergency works to fix a roof that now has more than 101 roof leaks and defects was submitted to the Department in September 2022.

Multiple surveys have been carried out. There was a visit by the Department of Education architect in April 2023. I have been raising the issues relating to the school in this House since last May and representations have been made to both the former Taoiseach's office and the former Minister of State with responsibility for special education. Back in October, I raised the condition of the school's roof directly with the Minister for Education in person and was assured it was being dealt with. It is not that there has not been any communication but we seem have been going around in circles for a long time without any clear pathway for the school.

In November, the Department of Education agreed to conduct a full roof examination but then refused the quote that was provided to it, even though the company in question has been used frequently by the Department. The feedback we got was that the Department believed the quote was from a roofing company rather than an independent roof leak detection specialist. That administrative error was only uncovered when the former Taoiseach got involved. We have children and teachers sharing their classrooms with buckets of water. During the summer, 40 l fell through the roof of one classroom in a week.

This is a health and safety issue. The funding has been applied for under emergency works - the clue is in the name - and the roof needs a full and total roof replacement, not repair. In addition to the roof, the school has submitted an emergency works scheme application to replace a heating system that has stopped working. It is a 25-year-old boiler. The pipework that is used to supply the school with hot water is not working either. The gas and electric heaters and the lack of insulation have been costing the school an absolute fortune. There are so many other things on which the school would like to spend money. Members can imagine how cold it gets for the staff and the kids during the winter. They will excuse the pun, but that is the tip of the iceberg of the problems with the building. However, these are the short-term health and safety issues of the highest priority that need to be addressed. The roof needs to be replaced and the heating system fixed but in the long term it is very clear that what is needed is a new school building. Work was done on that back in 2018 but it has not progressed. An additional budget amount has been allocated to the Department of Education. There was a supplementary budget of €405 million recently, with €205 million before Christmas. I respectfully ask that this matter be made an absolute priority.

CC Martin Conway

I thank the Senator for raising this extremely important issue.

GP Joe O'Brien this contribution

I thank the Senator. I am responding to this matter on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Foley.

The school to which the Senator refers, St. Francis Xavier Senior National School, currently has two live emergency works scheme applications with the Department. I should explain first that the purpose of the emergency works scheme is to provide funding specifically for unforeseen emergencies, or to provide funding to facilitate inclusion and access for pupils with special needs. An emergency is deemed to be a situation that poses an immediate risk to health, life, property or the environment, that is sudden, unforeseen and requires immediate action, and that, in the case of a school, if not corrected would prevent the school, or part thereof, from opening. Delivery of this scheme is managed on a devolved basis by the relevant school authority. As part of our digital strategy and streamlining arrangements, applications for emergency works can now be made via an online portal called Esinet.

As I mentioned, there are two live applications for the school in question. The first application refers to a funding request from the school for roof works. A site visit was facilitated by members of the Department’s professional and technical team who work with the Department’s emergency works team, and it was agreed that a leak detection test would be conducted as part of the application. This application was originally received in September 2022. There followed a considerable period of engagement between the Department’s emergency works team and the school in respect of the application. The leak detection test and the accompanying report were received very recently and are currently under active assessment by the emergency works team, which will continue to engage with the school as appropriate in respect of the next step for this application.

The second emergency works application for the school refers to a request for funding for the replacement of the existing redundant boiler, associated pipework and some ancillary works. This application was received in late March 2024 and assessed by the emergency works team and has been referred to colleagues in the professional and technical area for technical advice on the appropriate scope of works. Once this advice has been received, the emergency works team will engage with the school on the next steps for the progression of this application. I can provide more information in my follow-up because I spoke to the Department this morning about this matter, but that is what I have formally now.

FG Emer Currie

We are going around in circles on an emergency works application that ticks all of those boxes and that is not from today or yesterday but from September 2022. Bureaucracy is contributing to the delay. We have a problem and it needs to be fixed. Regarding access for children with additional needs, the school has been proactive in outlining that it wants an additional class. It has the space for an additional autism class. It needs an additional mainstream classroom as well. It has engaged with the Department of Education along the same timeline. We thought we were getting somewhere last July but the school has not heard anything since November and we know there is a shortage of places for children who want and need a place in a senior national school for September 2024. There needs to be a faster turnaround by the Department of Education for these emergency works.

GP Joe O'Brien

I will add to what I provided earlier because when I read the initial answer I felt more was needed. In April last year, an initial visual assessment was done by an architect but it was August last year before the senior technical officer visited the site. Therein lies some of the delay. The Department was keen to underline to me that the scheme is repair only, but also that a leak detection test was required and there was some over and back regarding who could or should do that. It was finally agreed. However, I am glad to report that the Department said to me this morning that it will expedite the consideration of the application now that it has the testing it needs.

CC Martin Conway

I thank the Minister of State. It is very welcome that he engaged with the Department when he read the reply that was provided to him by the Department on Senator Currie's Commencement matter. It is extraordinary in this day and age that this situation has been allowed to continue.

FG Emer Currie

I concur.

CC Martin Conway

As Acting Chairperson, I thank the Minister of State for his time this morning. I know he is busy but we appreciate him being here.

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