SCHOOLS READY BY DECEMBER 12
THE BUILDERS of the new €10m co-educational school in New Ross have committed to conclude works on all buildings by November 28 and to handover the two schools fully completed by December 12, having failed to complete the works on time for pupils to move in at start of the 2016 school term.
Sammon Group workmen have substantially completed the Catherine McAuley junior school, but a lot of work remains to be carried out on the senior school, Brian MacMahon, principal of the Edmund Rice School, said.
The company is facing delay charges running to thousands of euro per week from the Department of Education.
Mr MacMahon said it is very frustrating that after waiting 16 years for the schools to be built that the schools are not completed: ‘We met with the owner Michael Sammon and he promised us it will be done by Christmas. A lot of fit-out work is required in the senior school.’
THE BUILDERS of the new €10m coeducational school in New Ross have committed to conclude works on all buildings by November 28 and to handover the two schools fully completed by December 12.
Sammon Group workmen have substantially completed the Catherine McAuley junior school, but a lot of work remains to be carried out on the senior school, Brian MacMahon, Principal of the Edmund Rice school said.
The company is facing delay charges running to thousands of euros per week from the Department of Education.
The school, which was due to open in late August to around 700 students, is not expected to be open to students now until January.
Mr MacMahon said it is very frustrating that after waiting 16 years for the schools to be built that they are not completed.
When it opens the new school will see New Ross CBS, St Joseph’s and Michael St national schools amalgamated giving New Ross its first ever fully coeductional primary school.
Junior and senior infants students are being taught as a temporary measure at Michael St school, while older students are being taught in St Jospeh’s, including in a pre-fab.
Mr MacMahon said the move will take place over the Christmas break providing all the work is carried out.
He said: ‘We met with the owner Michael Sammon and he promised us it will be done by Christmas. A lot of fit out work is required in the senior school, including electrical and plumbing works. They gave us a schedule of works and we are meeting them every week for updates.’
Mr MacMahon said the fit out is scheduled to be completed by November 28 and it will take a fortnight for fire safety certificates etc to be completed.
‘We will start moving stuff in immediately. The parents, kids and staff have been brilliant. It’s so close to completion now, it’s just down to their lack of professionalism. When it’s built it will be absolutely excellent with a fantastic special needs unit. We’ve had 160 years of single sex schools in New Ross and we’re the only town in the county where that has been the case.’
There will be 320 senior students and 340 students in the school which has capacity for around 850 pupils.
‘Our numbers have grown already. We had a lot of people applying so much so that we had to take on an extra teacher in September.’