Ivana Bacik (Dublin Bay South, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Cathaoirleach Gníomhach and thank the Minister for taking this issue. I have raised the condition of facilities and infrastructure at the Enable Ireland Sandymount School. I put on record that while I welcome the presence of the Minister of State, Deputy Heydon, I am disappointed the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte is not here to take this issue and I know that was a matter of the Ceann Comhairle’s making. I have engaged with the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, on this and she has a very particular interest in the conditions here and is concerned about gaps in the provision of disability services and therapies in the Sandymount school, as am I.

I commend the amazing work that has been done at the Enable Ireland Sandymount School, especially the work of the principal, Jennifer Doyle, and her staff. This school is located on Sandymount Avenue in the heart of my constituency of Dublin Bay South. All those who live in the locale will be very well aware of it, as will many others who live further away, because it does a huge amount of work in providing education but also therapeutic support, treatments and interventions for children, many of whom have significant challenges and special needs and who require significant supports.

I had the pleasure of visiting the school most recently for its Christmas fair on 8 December, at the invitation of the principal, so I could see the facilities for myself and meet many of the pupils, parents and of course the staff who provide the supports. I wanted to hear from them directly about the work they are doing and the sort of issues they face. As I have said, many of the children require significant supports and have very particular needs. There is also an especially poignant issue in that some of the children have life-shortening conditions and there have been some very sad losses. I express my sincere condolences and sympathies to the families and the communities of those children who have so sadly died so young, in some cases, and who were pupils of the school.

On a happier note, in December I had the pleasure of viewing for myself the new playground facility that has been constructed at the school and of which the school and indeed the pupils are extremely appreciative. We viewed the playground and saw the hugely transformative impact it is having for children attending the school and for whom it provides a really important way of having play amenities available to them. However, while the playground is new and very impressive, the condition of the building is unfortunately far from impressive. The building is in an appalling condition. There are holes in the ceilings and walls. There are leaking ceilings and I saw the buckets the school staff are placing because rain is coming through. Conditions are deteriorating at a very rapid pace. I also saw how some of the most critical and normally most heavily used rooms, such as soft play areas for example, are simply out of use. The children have no access to these rooms and that is really impacting upon the quality of not just their education, but their treatment and any therapeutic intervention the school is offering to them. We cannot stand over this in Ireland in 2024. I am asking that the Government intervene to provide improvements in the conditions so the school has the necessary supports to fix the leaks and the buildings and ensure the children can have fit-for-purpose conditions in their school.

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