I raise St. Seton's Secondary School in Ballyfermot, which the Minister of State is very familiar with because his late uncle, Brother Paul Moynihan, was a former principal of the school. The school was awarded DEIS plus status and that in itself tells a clear story about the level of need in the area and the level of support needed by the young people who attend this school. Despite that recognition, the school is still waiting for something basic, a permanent building for the children. We in this Chamber all know that these children deserve a new school. St. Seton's was formed from the amalgamation of three schools on the clear understanding that a new, modern, single-site campus would be delivered. That commitment was given to the school community at the time of the amalgamation. Yet, it is fair to say that commitment has not been honoured. Instead, the school continues to operate across two sites and that brings real, day-to-day challenges, not only for students, but also for staff and the wider school community. The school is doing everything right. It is inclusive to the core. It has multiple autism classes. It supports children with additional needs. It supports children from marginalised backgrounds and communities and a wide range of backgrounds. Nothing is too much for this school. I acknowledge the board of management and the principal, Ms Sarah Green, and her staff who are doing exceptional work in challenging circumstances. I have visited the school where I had the pleasure of participating in a podcast and I really enjoyed it. It highlights the welcoming culture of the school and the pride these students have in their school. However, pride is not enough and this is not what they deserve. We cannot ask the school to just continue with these amazing achievements and fantastic projects. We know they are doing great stuff. It is great that they have been recognised with DEIS plus status, but what they really need to absolutely thrive is basic infrastructure. I ask the Minister of State to please go back to the Department and look at this project and see what can be done to ensure the school is first on the list for a new building when the time comes around next year. It is so important for the people of Dublin South Central and for the children in this area.

Sentiment score: 0.32

I really appreciate the Minister of State’s genuine response. He has a family connection to the school. As I said, I do not know how the school fell so behind on the list when it was promised a new building. Let us hope we can change that and do something to ensure that St. Seton's is a priority school when it comes to the Department's school building programme. We would love to have the Minister of State out to visit St Seton's Secondary School and to see first hand the amazing work the school community is doing. I thank him again. I really appreciate the effort he has promised to make to the school. Hopefully, we can follow that up in the next few weeks. I thank my colleague also for supporting this. Both of us are working together to ensure this happens for Ballyfermot.

Sentiment score: 0.49