IPPN

Published: 18 November 2008

Source : Sunday Business Post

Many schools want money for building projects, but the government will have to make choices that will leave many unhappy, writes Martha Kearns.

The capital allocation for school buildings was the only Budget 2009 announcement concerning the education sector which did not cause uproar among teachers and parents - in fact, it received little comment at all.

This was probably because the impression was given that the allocation had increased from last year. As schools are waiting to see if they are included in a new building list, to be made public in January, most don't want to ruffle any feathers within the department until it is published.

It is true that the overall capital allocation for education was one of the few areas across the entire budget that will increase next year - up 10 per cent on this year to €889 million.

But, within that, the allocation for the schools capital programmes was slightly down from €586 in Budget 2008 to €581 in 2009.

This, according to the Department of Education & Science, will allow for the completion of 26 major projects and start construction on another 62major projects at both primary and second-level. It will also allow completion of 100 smaller projects on site and allow 80 projects previously approved to progress to completion.

The fall in the allocation of funds for school buildings will become a bigger issue once principals, teachers and parents see what schools are included - and, more importantly, excluded - on the new list, which is due to be announced after Christmas. A previous list of 25 major new buildings was announced in September.

Work has not started on many of the schools that were named on the department's previous lists and the jobs have gone back out to tender. This, according to the Minister for Education and Science, Batt O'Keeffe, was because prices for school building projects were up considerably from this time last year.

''I am getting back tenders that are 15 per cent and 20 per cent less than they were when previously tendered. I insisted re-tendering take place in order for us to get value for money for the projects in hand," said O'Keeffe.

One school which is hoping to be included is January's list is English National School, located around 10km from Ballinasloe in Co Galway.

The school is 109 years old and parents feel the building is a health hazard for their children, many of whom come out in hives and get headaches as a result of poor ventilation in the classrooms. There are rats on the school grounds and mice inside the building. The school said it has a Rentokil report which showed that rodents were chewing on wires. ''This is a fire hazard - and with the windows nailed shut it is a tragedy waiting to happen. Engineer's reports have been sent to the Department of Education & Science, listing structural cracks in the walls, problems with the wiring and the windows, damp, mould, rotten roof, leaking plumbing, rotten floors, and so on. We have engineer's reports and Rentokil reports.

The HSE and Health and Safety are compiling reports.

We are not willing to wait for a Coroner's Report," read a statement from the school's parents association. The chairwoman of the association, Bridie Harney, said the biggest issue was the health hazard to the children, ten of whom had asthma, which is aggravated by the mould and damp. ''One child fell into a bucket which was set up to catch rainwater in one of the classrooms. Children are constantly slipping on wet floors.

There is no hot water and no heating in the toilets. Part of the storage heating has had to be shut off because the classroom was filling with smoke.

What is the long-term damage being inflicted on our children's health?"

The school got a grant of €20,000 from the department, which was used to put tar felt onto the roof to prevent slates from falling off into the playground, which had been a regular occurrence. ''The roof is still rotten. Toilets which had been flooding were replaced, but water is still seeping up through the floor. Wire mesh has been fitted to the inside of the windows in the main building to prevent glass blowing in on top of the children, but this is now a fire hazard in itself. Leaks to the roof and windows in the prefabs have been repaired, but new leaks keep appearing.

The Department seem to think that a few repairs here and there will make this a fit building for our children to be in - it will not," said the association. Parents of pupils, past and present, have bought a field behind the school and have started fund-raising in order to apply for planning permission themselves. They said they would pay for the plans, architect, planning - if the department gives €600,000 for the school building.

The Irish National Teachers' Organisation (INTO) said that a crisis was looming in the primary building programme. INTO general secretary John Carr said while there would be between 11,000 and 12,000 additional pupils in primary schools next year, the fact that the budget allocation for next year had decreased ''beggared belief''.

Carr said there were dozens of schools waiting for years for new buildings, extensions and renovations. ''Many of these were led to believe they would have builders on site this year. Now the minister appears to be short of funding to bring them on stream."

''In 2008 the summer works scheme had to be abandoned so new schools could be built. The minister must say what else will be sidelined so that new school places can be provided," said Carr. The summer works scheme is to be re-introduced next year, according to the minister.