I was due to speak on the need for an additional class between the three schools on Green Lane in Leixlip. Those three schools are Scoil Bhríde, Scoil Mhuire and Scoil Eoin Phóil. I attended Scoil Eoin Phóil. There is a requirement for an extra class, but I am delighted to say that this morning we finally received the good news that it has been delivered. Obviously, I had put in for this speaking slot and I still wish to speak to the matter. I am thankful to the parents who raised this issue with me, as well as to the principals who worked with me in the past number of months. This was an issue for parents. It has caused major concern because there is a lack of school places in the Leixlip area. Parents want their children to attend school in their parish, but in excess of 20 parents had not been able to get places for their children. As I said, there was real concern for those children, especially given that some of their siblings already attend the local school. It was a serious, live issue. I thank the three school principals, Anita Clarke, Seán O’Boyle and Áine Crotty, who liaised with me continually over the past number of months. They indicated to me that they wanted to get behind this to provide the extra places. Obviously, we had to convince the Department of the need for the class. The Minister, Deputy Naughton, was amazing throughout the process. She and her team kept going back and forth. I needed to explain to them the importance of delivering this extra school class in our parish. In fairness, it worked and the classroom has been delivered. That group of children will be able to go to school along with their siblings and friends. This speaks to the wider issue we have in north Kildare and in the Minister of State’s constituency of Dublin West, the Cathaoirleach Gníomhach’s constituency of Wicklow, Deputy Tóibín’s area of south Meath and Wexford town, where Deputy Lawlor is from. There are big population increases in these areas and there is a need for increased school provision. There is an increased demand for Gaelscoileanna, which is hugely important for all our towns and villages. We have demand in our secondary schools. We have a need for secondary school places. We also have a need for extra special education classes. I know this is not hard but they need to be dealt with. We must have a focus on this area. Every few years, we carry out a census. Every year, we see new numbers coming into the early childhood care and education, ECCE, programme. We need to be analysing those numbers clearly and in a qualitative way so we know where issues will arise in individual towns. Growing up in the expanding town of Leixlip in late eighties and the nineties, there was real growth in the area in which we went to school. As that boom declined, the numbers decreased but we are now seeing another housing boom coming back and those numbers are changing. We need to be alive to those changes. We must build for the future. All of these issues are real for the people who live in these communities. The idea of a parent with one or two children in a certain school having to ultimately put another child in the car for an extra 15 to 20 minutes depending on traffic – we all know how bad traffic can be in north Kildare – is just not tolerable. That was a real concern. I am happy that I have been able to speak and receive text messages from a number of parents today who are so relieved and delighted. I thank them for their forbearance. I also thank the principals for their work. I thank the Department for seeing sense in this proposal and making the right decision. I thank the Minister for her decision as well.

Sentiment score: 0.21

It is not often that I table a Topical Issue and get the win on the same day. This is a matter I have been raising for a number of months. As already stated, this is a very positive situation. What has happened speaks to the work of Department in this case. The Minister of State stated that a specific issue can be targeted. I was conscious of the potential for the Department to look organically at this from a high level as opposed to looking at parish boundaries, different clubs and roads and what areas gravitate towards their own areas. Children want to go to school with the other kids who live on their roads. We have a Gaelscoil and an Educate Together in our area. The Green Lane schools all have a Catholic ethos. Each one offers different things. Ultimately, people want their children to have the opportunity to go to school with other children on their roads and, most importantly, with the children in their homes, namely their older brothers or sisters who are already going to particular schools. In this instance, that would not have been possible until the decision made today. That is why I was quite passionate about this issue, why I liaised, as much as I could, with the schools and the parents involved in respect of it and, ultimately, why I raised it in the Dáil. I also spoke at meetings and raised the issue with the Department. As I said, in this case, the issue has been resolved. There is a wider issue regarding north Kildare and other areas that have difficulties. I am sure parents in Celbridge, Naas and Kilcock have real concerns about waiting lists for primary and secondary schools. Ultimately, we have a group of families who are delighted. As I said, I am sure other families might be in a position where they are still awaiting decisions. As I said, this is a new good news story for the Green Lanes schools and I am glad to be in a position to have that news.

Sentiment score: 0.23