It was with great disappointment that the príomhoide, staff, pupils and parents discovered that Gaelscoil Uí Earcáin was not included in the list of prioritised projects for 2026-27. Gaelscoil Uí Earcáin, Bóthar Ghlas Naíon, Finglas East, Dublin 11, is a recognised DEIS school and has been acknowledged by the Department of Education and Youth to be in extremely poor condition. It has long been accepted that a new school building needs to be constructed to replace the current school. Gaelscoil Uí Earcáin has been seeking a proper school building since it first opened in September 2005. The new school building will include 16 general classrooms and a two-classroom SEN unit. The school currently has 291 pupils and the new school will cater for approximately 400 pupils. The project is currently at stage 2a, architectural planning, and is being delivered under the ADAPT programme. To date, the project has stalled. According to the timeline agreed with the Department, the project should have moved on to stage 2b, that is, approval for statutory application, in August 2024. The agreed timeline, as presented to the school by the Department, is not being adhered to. Previously, in a meeting in January 2025 between the school authorities, design team and project manager, the Department requested an additional report to address issues of concern raised by the Department. The report was submitted to the Department addressing these concerns. Since then there has been no further progression of the project. The new school is urgently needed because the school is constantly firefighting as maintenance problems continually arise and a lot of money has gone into maintaining this old building. Teastaíonn freagraí uaim maidir leis an bhfáth ar tháinig deireadh leis an tionscadal seo.

Sentiment score: -0.00

Tá díomá orm an rud atá ráite ag an Aire Stáit a chloisteáil. Níl sé soiléir go bhfuil aon dul chun cinn á dhéanamh. Tá sé scannalach nach bhfuil aon rud le tabhairt ar ais don scoil mar gheall ar an bhfoirgneamh nua a thógáil. Tá sé de dhualgas ar an Rialtas fás ár dteanga a chur chun cinn. Níl ach scoil Ghaeilge amháin i bhFionnghlas cé go bhfuil líon mór scoileanna Béarla ann. There are lots of English schools all around Finglas. We see seem to be the second class. We do not seem to be taken seriously. This has been hard work. The principal, the pupils and the people in the area have done huge work to get this school running. There is massive demand in our area. This is a kick in the teeth to people trying to get their children into Irish schools and trying to put our language first. That should be the priority of the Government and of the Minister. I am so disappointed in the response.

Sentiment score: -0.04