CONFUSION AS SCHOOL BUILDER IN LIQUIDATION
UNCERTAINTY AS BRAY SCHOOLS’ DEVELOPER GOES INTO LIQUIDATION
HUNDREDS of Bray pupils have been left in the dark this week as to when they will move into new school buildings after developer Carillion went into liquidation.
The developer of the new Ravenswell Primary School and Coláiste Ráithín, Carillion, went into liquidation on Monday.
Coláiste Ráithín principal Gearóid Ó Ciaráin said that they will not now receive keys next Monday, as expected. The Department of Education and Skills said that it is working with another stakeholder to establish next steps and will not pay until work is finished. ‘We hope it won’t take prolonged negotiations to sort out,’ said
Mr Ó Ciaráin.
THE DEVELOPER of two new Bray schools has gone into liquidation, leaving uncertainty in its wake.
Coláiste Ráithín secondary school and Ravenswell primary school on the Golf Club Lands are all but finished,
The sod turned at the 10-acre campus on the golf club lands in July 2016.
It was announced on Monday that developer Carillion is going into liquidation. Management, pupils and their families fear that there will be a delay in handing over the schools as the Department of Education manages the situation in the wake of the liquidation.
Principal of Coláiste Ráithín, Gearoid O Ciarain, said that they were expecting to get the keys to their school next Monday, January 22. ‘At this moment we can’t put a date on it,’ he said.
Mr O Ciarain said that the Department of Education has said they hope to be able to solve the situation in the short term. ‘But we just don’t know,’ he said. ‘We hope not to get bogged down in legal quagmire, we hope it won’t take prolonged negotiations to sort out. It is 90 per cent complete or more and could be done in less than a month. We just hope this won’t cause undue delays.’
The work to be completed includes some damage to the roof recently caused by a burst tank.
‘While, the schools at Coláiste Raithín and Ravenswell primary school in Bray are almost complete, there are now fears that the handover could be de- layed,’ said Deputy John Brady.
Carillion’s role in the development not only included the initial construction of the schools but to operate and maintain the buildings for 25 years.
‘ The liquidation of Carillion means uncertainty for the two schools in Bray as well as teachers, students, parents and the wider community,’ said Deputy Brady, who said he will be raising the issue on the floor of the Dáil this week.
The parents association at Cóláiste Ráithín has been campaigning for a new building since 1994.
The secondary school campus is to provide 450 student places, while Ravenswell includes 24 classrooms.
It was announced in 2013 that both schools had received approval for funding for new school buildings, however, the project hit a stumbling block in April 2015 when it was refused planning permission by Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council. An Bord Pleanála later granted permission.
The Department of Education and Skills released a statement in which they said that they were aware of the compulsory liquidation of Carillion.
Carillion is the lead consortium member and a 50 per cent shareholder in InspiredSpaces, the Special Purpose Vehicle responsible for delivery of the Schools Bundle 5 Public Private Partnership (PPP) Programme. The Programme includes five schools and one further education college.
The contract is managed by the National Development Finance Agency (NDFA) on behalf of the Department of Education and Skills.
‘ The NDFA is currently assessing the implications of the Carillion liquidation for this contract,’ It should be noted that, at this time, InspiredSpaces remains in place as the Special Purpose Vehicle responsible for delivery of Schools Bundle 5. The other 50 per cent shareholder in this Special Purpose Vehicle is DIF-Dutch Infrastructure Fund BV. The NDFA is liaising with DIF in relation to next steps.
‘At this time, the school buildings in question are approximately 90 per cent completed. The Department of Education and Skills remains committed to the full completion of these schools in as timely a manner as possible. No Unitary Charge payments will be made by the Department until the schools are fully completed. To date, the only payment which has been made by the Department to InspiredSpaces is €4.4 million for off-site works, which have already been completed.
‘ The Department of Education and Skills is monitoring the situation closely and will provide a further update as available.’