Damp, mouldy, cramped and rotten... this is the standard of school we give to special needs children
Cavan principal feared school ceiling would fall in on class
A DEPARTMENT of Education official called a school to try to limit journalists and politicians from highlighting the substandard and cramped conditions facing its 168 students with special needs.
The call came the morning after the Irish Mail on Sunday sent a media query to the department about the Holy Family School in Cootehill, Co. Cavan, and the issue was raised in the Dáil by a TD.
Yesterday, a department spokeswoman confirmed the call took place – but argued it rang to reassure the school about the pace of a project to provide a new building for the school.
But the MoS understands that, during the call, a department offiing cial suggested any further media or political attention of the conditions
‘They’ve said for years a new building is coming’
would serve no purpose. According to parents and teachers at the school, the ceilings in Holy Family School are close to collapsing under the weight of damp and rot while planks of wood are holding it up in some places.
One father says teachers place buckets on some classroom floors on Friday afternoons to catch leaks, so the floor is not soaked when the children return on Mondays.
Frustration has been growing locally over the slow pace of movement towards a new building. The department wrote to parents in 2004, in correspondence seen by the MoS, saying the school had been given a Band 1 Rating. The letter says: ‘This is the highest priority project rating available.’
Paddy McAloon, whose 10-yearold son Reece attends the school, said: ‘It’s an absolute disgrace. They have been telling us for years that a new building is just around the corner. The ceiling in some places is black with damp. The rooms are so small the kids’ manual hoists and walkers have to be stacked in the corridors.’ The build- is so small some classes are housed in a former hostel, The White Star, in the town, which has no cooking facilities, meaning children have to be bussed up and down for their lunch.
Paddy said: ‘It’s a three-storey building – that’s deadly for children with wheelchairs. And the door opens right onto the main road – bus drivers have complained about near misses when the kids come out too quickly.’ Another father Tony Traynor said: ‘My daughter Ruby is six, we’re in the same boat as everyone else. She’s in a wheelchair and we need a better environment for her. Our main concern now is her health, it’s so damp in there. She uses a lot of equipment and it’s so cramped.’ When contacted by the MoS, principal Rachel Moynagh said: ‘Two months ago we were genuinely afraid the ceiling would fall in after really heavy rain. Our numbers are going up all the time, some classes were sent to a hostel 12 years ago in a temporary solution. They are still there.’
In the Dáil on Thursday, local Fianna Fáil TD Niamh Smyth said: ‘Children are suffering. Their safety, health and education are at risk each and every day that the construction is postponed.’
A department spokeswoman said planning permission had been secured last August. She said: ‘The department has provided every assistance to the school and its design team to move the school rebuilding project forward to tender and construction stage.
‘Upon completion of the review of the revised 2b submission the department will immediately revert to the school with a timeframe to proceed to tender and construction stage. A normal standard tender period would take six months to complete.’ In relation to the call to the school on Friday, she said: ‘An official rang to reassure the school that the project is moving as quickly as possible.’
‘Their safety and health are at risk every day’