Sir, – I am writing to you as a concerned parent of Gaelscoil Choláiste Mhuire on Parnell Square in Dublin’s north inner city. I am outraged to learn that our school, along with 58 other school projects, is due to be stalled. Again.
Progress has been incredibly slow over the last 10 years, and the school has been stuck in our “emergency” accommodation at Parnell Square for nearly 20 years. The current building is a wholly inadequate Georgian townhouse that is unfit for purpose.
The classrooms are cramped in over four floors, with crumbling plasterwork, and no universal access, the staircases raise concerns about safety, there is no assembly hall, and the playground is a car park. This list goes on.
The teachers and parents have been patient, but we cannot accept any further delays. We have been assured so many times that there would be no further delays, and we are shocked at this new revelation. We implore the Minister, for the sake of our children, that we cannot be delayed again as we are shovel-ready to commence the new school building.
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Our children deserve a modern, safe, and adequate learning environment. It is unacceptable that they have been forced to attend a school that is not fit for purpose for nearly two decades.
As a parent, I cannot emphasise enough this issue’s importance to our community.
Our children’s education should be a top priority, and we cannot allow any more delays.
We would like immediate action to make sure that the construction of the new school building begins without further delay. We need leadership and support to ensure that our children have the facilities they need to thrive and succeed.
I had the misfortune to attend a secondary school in the 1980s that was located in an old dilapidated Carnegie library, with no facilities and a car park for a playground. I thought, as a country we had progressed beyond this. My two children have between them attended Gaelscoil Choláiste Mhuire for almost 10 years, and the progress on the “new school” has been glacial at best. What does it take to get this done? – Yours, etc,
KIERAN L RYAN,
Fairview,
Dublin 3.