Duleek loses out in bid for secondary school
A MAJOR new secondary school project to cater for an increasing population in south Drogheda/East Meath is set to go ahead on lands outside the town, rather than in Duleek, which was also suggested as a location by many local politicians.
In a letter last week, Minister Richard Bruton said that the department had consulted with Meath County Council on the project and south Drogheda was seen as a better location than Duleek due to the number of houses being built in the immediate area.
The new secondary school will cater for 600 students at first and can rise to 1,000.
Meath CC say the vast majority of new developments will be in south Drogheda with a ‘minimal’ number in Duleek. Analysis says that 410 students from Duleek and district
are now in schools in Drogheda and it is ‘unlikely’ that a 1,000 strong school is sustainable in Duleek.
Cllr Sharon Keogan recently expressed her shock and surprise that nobody had made contact with the parish priest in the village who had offered a site on the Station Road for the project.
Cllr Paddy Meade said that the local area council had passed a motion calling on the department to locate the school in Duleek for a multiple of reasons.
‘Worst still from the reading of this response it would appear that council officials went against the wishes of the elected reps in the area and so this will have to be questioned and if so, it is very disappointing,’ he stated.
‘Duleek with its large and growing population and proximity to Drogheda and Donore already has the population to support a secondary school and so this is disappointing.
There was also great hope here with this project for the future development of Duleek.’
He felt having a new school would have been a huge boost to businesses in the village.
‘ There was a suggested location in Duleek which appeared to have the support of locals and groups, sadly the same can not be said in South Drogheda.
For while I proudly represent that area too, and many local people are delighted with the news, there is also serious wonder about how the traffic is going to be managed in the area, and for this reason and many more I must say I’m very disappointed.’