Jen Cummins
Dublin South-Central · Social Democrats · Ireland
“However, there is an advantage if their family can buy them one and they can continue their school work at home. It is not good enough to say that schools can make up their minds about that. The Department needs to actually decide and give guidance like it does for other things.”
“Circular 0032/2017 has been in existence for almost ten years and in most parts is not enforced. There is no point in issuing a circular if nothing is going to be done about it. I am delighted the Minister has said there will be a working group to review and hopefully strengthen that.”
“I thank the Labour Party for bringing forward this motion. It is very timely. These are the summer months when parents start to think about how we will we stretch our finances to autumn, get everything that we need to ready and then still maybe take a holiday, organise summer camps, etc. The motion is, as stated, very timely.”
“I see it as an absolute disgrace that such a number of people need that support. I welcome that that funding and support is there for those families but I am still shocked that this affects 233,000 children, which is a lot of children, aged between two and 18. I think it goes up to 22 in some cases. There is a digital divide.”
“When parents were told, they had six weeks to pay but most people do not have such a flexible budget to allow them to pay the €160 or however much it is. When things are being reintroduced time needs to be factored in for that. There was an increase in the cost of school transport for families.”
“I will go through a few of the things that I think still present challenges. The capitation grant for schools was increased last year but has still not reached a level which will mean that schools are fully funded. It has not reached the level where it needs to be. In addition, it does not take into consideration the level of inflation.”
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“First, I wish to commend my colleague, Dr. Aidan Farrelly, on his work on this Bill. For the benefit of those people in the Chamber who do not know, Deputy Farrelly is not just a TD and spokesperson for young people but he is also an expert in the area of youth work. His PhD work was about youth work, so it can safely be said of Deputy Farrelly that he is extremely well placed to bring this Bill forward, having worked as a youth worker and achieved the highest level of education in this area. I was also a youth worker and researcher in this area and I say that because it is important to know that Bills like this are coming from research, evidence and lived experience. As far back as 2004, I was a board member of the National Youth Council, which is very welcome here again today.”
“I was struck by the people in that fantastic centre saying that the equipment they had was out of date. How they explained it to me was - I do not really want to name things, but I will - it was the equivalent of having a Nokia "blockia" rather than the most up-to-date iPhone or such phone. If we want to be the best we can, we cannot be working with out-of-date equipment. Like the Minister said, we need to be looking at materials and instruments that are for the future, not the past. I am delighted to speak about science today. The Social Democrats takes it very seriously. We celebrate the things that are going well. To be the best we can in the world, we need to make sure we have the resources. I commend the Minister on his passion in this area. I will say that. His interest in the area has moved us on quite a lot.”
“They have experienced it not just at school, but elsewhere. That allows young people to believe they can be whatever they want to be. They experience that hands on, harnessing that curiosity. I praise Dr. O'Sullivan and Maynooth University to ensure it is rolled out to as many young people as possible. The students in Clogher Road Community College in my constituency are taking part in it and I look forward to visiting them as they do that. I recently met staff of the Amber Centre, hosted by Trinity College. I was fascinated to see its programme and how its pillars link in with industry. A lot of people talk about talent. It is not my favourite word when we talk about people and their interest in STEM, but if that is the way we describe it, that is fine.”
“If we are to stay as world class as we are in STEM, that needs to be addressed fundamentally. The Minister needs to take leadership on that. That goes for all Ministers working in education, as both Departments have responsibility for that. Youth services are really challenging the issue. They are working in areas and providing really good STEM projects. In the South West Inner City Network, SWICN, in Dublin 8, there is a project with a 3D printer, which is a fantastic resource. That is beneficial to young people, particularly in disadvantaged areas. At third level, there are initiatives to address STEM. Today would not be a good day to fail to mention Dr. Katriona O Sullivan's STEM passport for inclusion, because the work she has done has seen 5,000 young women go through that programme learning about STEM.”
“The Department of education's indicator report in 2024 showed that only 71% of girls were offered STEM subjects other than maths and sciences as opposed to 96% of boys in boys schools. The research showed that while girls' STEM achievement had improved in mixed schools, stereotypes in mixed classrooms still limited their participation and confidence. Construction studies was available in 84% of co-educational schools but in only 5% of single-sex girls schools. Engineering was available in 74% of co-educational schools but only in 6% of single-sex girls schools. That is a huge disadvantage for those girls. We need to seriously look at our school structures and make sure that they are not disadvantaging young people based on their gender or indeed, where they are from or their socioeconomic background.”
“At a recent meeting of the education committee, we heard from teacher unions and organisations about leaving certificate reform. The Irish Science Teachers' Association said that because there had not been the necessary investment at second level in science laboratories in particular, there were health and safety risks due to insufficient space for lab work, a lack of safety guidance and no risk assessment protocols. That needs to be set out under the new curriculum reform. I understand that the Minister wants to work on this. If we go to the bother of reforming the curriculum to make it the best it can be, it is imperative that we put the resources behind that. The I Wish survey revealed that girls in all-female schools continued to face greater barriers to studying STEM subjects.”
“I am not sure if the Minister of State was there but it was something else. One of the schools in my constituency, Griffith Barracks Multi-Denominational School, asked which was better, hearing or reading? They tested 54 people and their results showed that people did better when they heard the instructions. They said that the judge praised them highly and I am praising them again now. It was a fantastic project. What is fantastic about starting to explore science in primary school is that it stops the growth of any barriers to who can be a scientist and all of the stereotypes that can be fed in as children go along. However, every primary school has to be fully equipped with materials and resources to be able to harness that curiosity. At second level, there are also concerns.”
“I am delighted to contribute to this debate today during Science Week. As spokesperson for this area, I have had the pleasure over the last number of months of meeting many groups, organisations and people working in this area. I would like to talk about the main issues that could prevent us from being a world-class leader in science if they are not addressed. We need to ensure that our primary schools are fully resourced for those naturally inquisitive minds that children have. The Minister talked about curiosity and I agree with him 100%. Curiosity for science starts when children are very young and we need to harness that all of the way through our education system. Each year, primary schools can put forward projects for Science Blast. In January, I went to visit it and my mind was blown away by the projects there.”
“I am able to say to parents what I have been told and they are able to get around it that way but this must be much clearer for parents. It is very difficult. I am speaking on behalf of other parents who have told me it is difficult to have a child with a disability and additional needs and navigate that system. Will the Tánaiste please ask the Minister to get the NCSE to clarify that situation for parents, so they are not in this loop. They seem to be stuck in a gap.”
“I have been assured by both the Minister, Deputy McEntee, and the Minister of State, Deputy Michael Moynihan, that despite the fact 1 October has passed, this will not prevent any child who gets a diagnosis or a letter of eligibility afterwards from being considered. This is not the experience of many parents who have contacted me. Some of them are from the Tánaiste’s constituency. If you look at the website today and go to the portal, you will see it says it is closed. There is no way to navigate that.”
“The recurring theme of my time in this Chamber is talking about special education. Today I want to bring up the NCSE asking parents to notify it before 1 October if their child needs space in a school. This is fantastic because it means the process is supposed to move on further.”
“These people were wronged in childhood and are being wronged now in adulthood. Can this be put in writing by the end of this week so these people do not have to go into another weekend, staying outside in the cold and starving?”
“It is day 47 and four people are outside the House, as has been previously stated. Their requests are not huge. They are getting conflicting information. Sometimes agreements are made, then it is changing and it is back again. This is causing trust issues. When agreements are not written down, they can change. They need to be written down. Yesterday, they were very happy with the meeting with the mediator. The difficulty is the mediator is not available until next week. That leaves another week. We are now on day 47 so we will be up to the mid-50s at that stage. They are steadfast in their hunger strike and will not stop until it is in writing. I am incredulous that this is taking so long. I know the Tánaiste is trying his best but I want him to try harder. Where is the humanity?”
“I beg to differ and so do many people in my constituency, including Dublin 8 for All, Inchicore for All and lots of police people who are doing great work to counteract the hate, fear and dread that has been driven into people who are at their wits' end. The lack of urgency the Government has shown in addressing the rise of hatred and violence is unacceptable and dangerous; and there is a risk to life. The Government needs to listen to us, look at what is going on and act.”
“Desperate people see that and believe that at least somebody is listening to them and maybe somebody might act in their best interests. That is how the far-right playbook is operating and developing. Now there is fear, dread, violence and intimidation based on people's skin colour or where they are perceived to be from. IPAS centres, which are people's homes, are being attacked and burned down. Recently we have seen attempted murder and serious injury in Dublin 8, in Basin Lane in my constituency, and in Drogheda. Tricolours are being hung all around my constituency, not because it is St. Patrick's Day but to say foreigners are not welcome here.”
“The atmosphere in this country has changed and it is entering into uncertain times. People are at their wits' end with regard to housing, public services, the lack of facilities in their communities and just feeling left behind by this Government. What should be centre stage for this Government is ensuring that this country has functional public services, has a thriving economy and is safe for people who live here and come here for safety. However, what we see is dysfunction and emptiness. People do not feel they can influence or change things that are so desperately wrong in this country. Waiting in the wings are characters who are looking to blame others who have nothing to do with the failures in this country, the failures from the Government. These characters are flooding social media with fear and hatred, and are inciting violence.”
“It is important that any family sending their children to school should not be going to a loan shark, a credit union, a bank or other family members to be able to just have this basic thing, which is being able to send their children to school knowing they are not going to go hungry themselves or that their children will not go hungry, or that the children would be shamed because they do not have the uniform because they cannot afford it. I thank Sinn Féin for bringing this Bill forward.”
“We are trying to make the lives of young people easier and make it easier for them to learn. In regard to children with additional needs, uniforms need to be practical for those students as well because it is really important they are comfortable and do not have sensory overload from uniforms that are itchy or uncomfortable. I am disappointed the Government will not support this Bill. The Social Democrats will support it.”
“It is dangerous and they will not feel comfortable in it. How will a transgender child wear a uniform that is assigned to one gender or the other? There has to be flexibility in that. In regard to having items that are compulsory and items that are not, some schools I have been involved in have had a tracksuit but the tracksuit did not have the iron on crest but rather the crest you have to buy and that is the problem because they are the expensive things. I thank Sinn Féin for bringing this Bill forward. I echo my colleague from the Labour Party in saying I am disappointed the Government cannot see that this Bill has to be brought forward because what was already set out in that circular is not happening. When the Government implements things, it needs to follow up on them. It is really important.”
“What it means is they buy the school uniform but then they do not have any other clothes because it is either-or. It sounds like we are talking about the 1980s or previous times but we are not. This is 2025 and this is happening for families. What I and the Social Democrats are saying is that if we want to have free education in this country, which we keep saying we want to have, it will not be free as long as we have these costs that cannot be kept down to a minimum. It is so easy to do that but it needs to be policed. Not only do uniforms need to be affordable but they need to be comfortable and practical. Girls wearing shorts or shirts that are down to their ankles or up to their knees or wherever is not practical. How are they supposed to cycle? They will not cycle in a skirt that goes up to here or is down to their ankles.”
“There are exam costs, voluntary contributions, which really are not voluntary in some cases, and other costs associated with going to school such as lunches. I know there are free lunches but not everybody eats the free lunches. If education was truly free, there would not be costs for any of these things. We have one in five children living in poverty. The reality is that we have the Society of St. Vincent de Paul delivering food and we have food banks. We have families who go to different places to pick up food every single week. Uniforms are the last thing they can deal with or else uniforms are the thing they focus on because they know it is the thing that will draw attention to the student, in that they are different and are not the same as everybody else because they do not have the school uniform or the uniform is dirty.”
“The circular said uniforms should be generic, practical and the costs for families should be reduced as much as possible but yet all we hear this evening is that this is not the case. We have a situation where school uniforms are expensive and families are struggling and coming to the end of August and beginning of September, they are thinking about what they will do if there is not that culture within the school to have swaps when students grow out of things. I think a lot of schools are doing that and getting used to the idea but there are schools that are not because people are contacting us asking us if this can be brought in and asking if anything can be done. Students have to have uniforms, tablets and books. I am constantly puzzled that they have to have tablets and books.”
“If they were generic, it would not be as hard to replace them. Previous speakers said that if the polo shirt is a generic that can be bought anywhere, that is great but if it is an expensive one, a family might have one or might have none. If we have circulars and there are things set out by the Department that schools are supposed to do and they are not doing them, what is the consequence? What is the point in somebody in the Department of education writing a circular, saying this is what we want the school to do but then it does not happen? What role does the Minister of State have in making sure that happens because this Bill would not have had to have been brought forward if what was set out in the circular was being done?”
“I was delighted when it came out for the kids we supported in our project. All school completion programmes and all schools working in disadvantaged areas have a bank of uniforms in case somebody forgets something. In our project, Ballymun Anseo School Completion Programme, we had a washing machine and dryer so we could wash uniforms. We had a stock of uniforms so we could replace them for families who could not afford to replace them themselves. We had the facility to wash and dry uniforms, if that was necessary. Sometimes if a student only has one uniform and if that uniform gets dirty on a Monday in the yard or during sport, it will be dirty for the remainder of the week because he or she does not have a second one. When a uniform is really expensive, it is hard to replace it.”
“I have been involved in multi-denominational schools for a long time and what I found was that there is no uniform in those schools but there is not that competition and the reason for that is that the students kind of have their own uniforms, which is leggings and a hoodie or jeans or tracksuit bottoms and a hoodie. They fall into what it is and there is not that big competition. However, this Bill is about the cost of living and supporting families in a situation where it is so expensive to put their children through our free education system. As previous speakers said, this is where the problem is - it is not free. I have mentioned Circular 32/17 several times in the Dáil because I thought I might have imaged that circular came out because nothing ever seems to have happened about it.”
“Recently I had students from Clogher Road Community College in. They were doing leaving certificate applied, LCA, work experience with me. I asked them to do a project on what their ideal school would be. They had a long list and one of the things they had on the list was no school uniform. They do not have a uniform in the school they go to but they were both in schools previously where they did have a uniform. They feel much better in themselves not having to wear a school uniform. My last point on this, before I go back to the substantive part, is I know people argue that if we do not have a school uniform, it can lead to competition as to what clothes students wear. School culture is very important in this.”
“Where I am coming from, and this is where it speaks to Sinn Féin's Bill, some children and young people do not have the uniforms because they are just so expensive. On that basis, a family cannot afford to replace the tie. The easiest part of the school uniform to get lost is the tie. They do not know where it is. It falls down the back of the radiator or wherever but it is gone. It is expensive to replace it. I do not know why school uniforms need to have a tie in the first place but that is probably a side part of this. School jumpers, as has been said by many, are very expensive. Students grow out of them, they lose them, they get holes in them, somebody else take them or whatever. Schools have to have a practical way of dealing with this. Having generic uniforms, if they have to have them, is so important.”
“The Bill does deal with the fact that we have to have uniforms but there needs to be a practical understanding from schools on how to implement their policies. I often worked with young people with regard to attendance. I worked in the school completion programme where attendance was a big thing. What we would find was that a young person would eventually get to school after being suspended due to behaviour, or after a long absence, only to be told they were wearing the wrong colour shoes, the wrong tie or they forgot this or that. That is ridiculous because the child is sent home to get the proper uniform. Schools need to be practical about this. Yes, uniforms are extremely expensive. Some people might forget them but others may not have them.”
“Uniforms are a huge cause of discomfort for people. The main reasons are that for children and young people with sensory issues, uniforms are often very uncomfortable and are very itchy. They are not practical for girls, in that uniforms might have very long or very short skirts and are not very practical in cold weather and for cycling. However, that is not a reason that if we do have a school uniform that it is not then affordable. I will come to that part and I am not dissing this Sinn Féin Bill at all. I am just saying that uniforms are important for people and if we have them, that is fine but there might be an alternative. Uniforms cause a huge amount of difficulty for some students because they forget items.”
“I welcome the Sinn Féin Bill and thank that party's Members for their work on it. The use of school uniforms is often debated by parents, patrons and researchers. Some people love uniforms and others do not. The Social Democrats support this Bill, however, if the Ceann Comhairle will indulge me, I will speak about having school uniforms in the first place. I will not take up too much time on this but Ireland is one of only three countries in Europe that has uniforms in our State schools. The other countries are the UK and Azerbaijan. Other countries may have school uniforms and it varies depending on whether they are private schools or there are particular reasons but most do not in their state schools. I researched this issue during my doctoral work and when I worked as a youth worker and in a school completion programme.”
“They have an inside space but want to be able to use another part, to be able to work there, to include more men. If at all possible, I would love for the Government to invest in this men's shed. I am sure there are other men's sheds that I just have not visited yet that are equally as important, but I want to pay tribute to those men. They are saving lives. It is so important but it is so simple. That is what makes it brilliant. It does not have to be complicated. Reaching out to one another, being with others, sharing your story and listening to others is what makes us human.”
“It is playing a crucial role in reducing social exclusion and isolation, improving mental health for the men and building a stronger sense of community across Dublin 12. They do a number of projects. They work on wood projects, from planters to Christmas decorations to pens and bird boxes. They showed us amazing stuff. That is when the magic happens, because when they are busy doing things, they are able to talk, listen and create a place where they can cry and laugh. It is a happy and concerning environment. They are so good at it now that they have a waiting list. To that end, I am going to be very cheeky and say that this group really needs funding to build a tiny extension out the back so there is extra workspace. They are working outside.”
“Before I start, I have some visitors in the Gallery from a school who are on leaving certificate applied, LCA, work experience. I want to say thank you to them. They have done excellent work so far this week. I would like to pay tribute in this debate to a group of my constituents in Dublin South-Central, the Dublin 12 Men's Shed. I had the pleasure of going to visit them recently with my constituency manager, Amy King, who is also in the Gallery. We had a really inspiring discussion with them. They have become embedded in their community. They have provided a safe, welcoming space for all men to go, meet and share their skills, work on community projects and support one another.”
“Really, I hope that next year when we are here, there will not be one person as of 16 October 2026 who does not a have school place because the school is not built, the room is not sanctioned or the staff are not trained. On that point, if schools knew two years in advance that there were a number of children coming, they would have the opportunity for continuing professional development, CPD, for those staff members and to be able to recruit people who are going to work in those classes. We are putting schools under enormous pressure in that time period. They are trying to plan for next year in the year they are in. Every single day in school is a busy day, as we all know. If there were a little bit more time and support given for that, it would be better.”
“It is really important that we further that as far as we can and as quickly as we can. I want to give an example of schools being sanctioned but nothing happening. I mentioned several times previously Clogher Road Community College in my own constituency, which was sanctioned for a second classroom yet there is nothing there. If we had two years beforehand known exactly what was going on, that would already be built. It takes time to build those facilities. I do not want to take up too much time because it is late in the day and the points have been made. It is a very practical proposal. I understand the reasons the Minister of State does not want to take them on board, and I accept that he has constraints in his role.”
“For those children who do not have a school place, the amount of advocacy that their parents have to do on top of the care needs they have for their children puts enormous pressure on them. We need to be cognisant of the fact that nobody should have to contact their local TD to get their child into a school. I am shocked by it. I am a first-time TD. I am shocked that people have to resort to that and that they cannot, like every other child in our system, apply to a school, go in, fill out the form, whether it is online or whichever way it is done, and get a school place. That should be happening for children with additional needs but, unfortunately, it is not. There is an issue with the common application system as well. I am uncertain. I know there are pilots and things like that going on.”
“However, there are still a number of young people who do not have a school place because a school building is not ready. If we knew two years in advance the number of children who were going to be applying to X school and whatever else, that would be plenty of time to build those buildings. As we all know, buildings do not pop up overnight. If that 1 October deadline was brought back a year, that would give building and forward planning and all that enough time so we would not be in this situation. With regard to looking at parents and the pressures they are under, I reiterate that anything we can do to alleviate their struggles is what we should be doing. There are far too many young people who are struggling.”
“For the children I am talking about, however, that should have been communicated. That woman should not have had to contact her local TD to find out why the application was not accepted. The difficulty is that we are still hearing from families whose children do not have school place. I know the Minister of State is trying his best but, unfortunately, that is not translating into actual school places. There were a number of children as of 1 October who did not have a school place at all. I am glad to see that one young person whose parents met the Minister of State the last time we were talking about this in the House did start school this week, which I am delighted about. I will not name her because I do not have consent from her parents to say that. However, I did see on Instagram that she has started school, so I am delighted for her.”
“I did write and, thankfully, that has gone by. The difficulty is that I do not think that message has been communicated directly to special educational needs officers, SENOs, or to those on the ground or wherever it needs to be communicated because that parent was told "No". She was told no because she was late, but I spoke to the Minister for State and the Minister, Deputy McEntee, who assured me that of course people get diagnoses and things later and so they can apply later. We need to remember that. This motion would mean it could be anticipated two years in advance. If a child is in an early childhood education setting, they already know what their needs are if they have already got their diagnosis. Two years in advance would, therefore, be fantastic for those children.”
“I thank Sinn Féin very much for bringing forward this motion. It is a lot of common sense. Anything we can do in this House to make the transition into our formal education system easier for children with disabilities and their families, we should try to do. It would bring certainty and forward planning into that. A year is a very short time. We say a year but, really, applications are made on 1 October to start the following year. Schools close for the summer. The poor principals are still working over that time. I know the structure that has been put in place with 1 October is not without its difficulties. I was contacted by a parent recently who wants to try to get two of her children into a school. She was told that she had missed the deadline of 1 October and that she would not be able to be issued with the letters she got.”
“Let us provide €150 million for capital investment for further and higher education but let us not be back here again having not fixed contracts for people or made sure the terms and conditions of educators are sorted. Capital investment is fantastic but we also have to consider how we will ensure curriculum courses are future-proofed. We need to consider what a child starting junior infants now will need into the future. This is a great opportunity to future-proof courses and determine what we need. Leaving certificate reform is not under the remit of the Minister of State but there is an opportunity to examine how we make that process smoother, whether it involves apprenticeships or third level. This could be much more fluid and people would not feel there is a hierarchy in how we provide education in this country.”
“Independent education centres are one thing but these are centres which are supposed to operate at QQI level and follow certain procedures. We have to be able to treat all of our educators with parity, respect and dignity. It is the responsibility of the Department to ensure that, where possible, those people are brought under the public service remit. Youthreach and CTCs are not treated at the same level under pay scales. Adult educators are not happy with the contracts they are being offered. In the round, we have an excellent system. I am always saying that. We are very proud of our education system in Ireland and we want to make sure it is better. I am, however, concerned about a surplus of €1.8 billion, a staggering amount of money.”
“We will invest in capital, but given the giant surplus we should also consider the employment of some of those involved in the service. As the Minister of State knows, in the summer we met with a group of adult educators who are not happy with how the new contracts have been rolled out. My understanding from them is that several courses cannot be run because there is no funding. The Minister of State has assured me that there is funding but we have been told there is not. We have been told contracts will not be fulfilled because there is no funding for them. There is a challenge with employment. The Minister of State and I spoke earlier about community training centres. She said it is a matter for the board but those employed by a State-funded organisation, which is an educator, should come under the public service.”
“Obviously, people going back to adult education may start with literacy and numeracy because their children have started in school and they do not have the level of education they would like to have, so they go into courses. Some adult education services provide classes in Gaeilge for the parents of children attending a Gaelscoil or naíonra. It is the first step on the rung but services are provided in centres which are not great. This fund will allow those centres to get up to scratch and to where they need to be so that when people come to those centres they feel very proud. They already feel proud to go to them but the building around them should be the best it can be, as is the case in many of our primary and secondary schools.”
“They provide courses for young people coming from mainstream, back into education who really have to learn a lot of self-appreciation. They may not have been as happy in school or as welcome in school. They may have had a very difficult time, so when they go to a community training centre, they find the way they learn is okay, that it is okay to learn the way they do and that there is nothing wrong with them because they cannot learn the way the mainstream is or whatever has happened in the mainstream to mean that has broken down and meant they come to community centres. As it is learner-centred, it means they have basic things they are able to learn and are then able to specialise in. That is the success of teaching and learning in community training centres.”
“When we have training courses there we can entice young people who may not have had a great time in mainstream education into a Youthreach centre to do those courses so they can go on further and rediscover their love of learning. I also spoke this morning about community training centres. I am sorry if I am repeating myself, but Deputies know I am very passionate about community training centres from my involvement with them. The courses they have are run on a shoestring as are Youthreach centres. They are not able to do all the things they would like to do. They are being asked to do more and more on less and less. They are also in buildings that are not great. They are in centres that might not have been invested in for a long time.”
“They then go to Youthreach and do QQI level 3 and 4. There is also Youthreach for level 5 and 6. They are being trained to go into customer service employment in the future and they are learning in an environment that is inclusive, flexible and learner-centred. It is so successful for those young people because of the way they teach there and because of the atmosphere. I am sure anyone here who has been to a Youthreach centre will know how fantastic they are. These centres also have fantastic forward-facing programmes. I was involved in one in Ballymun, which got a 3D printer that was fantastic. Can that be rolled out? At a meeting of the Joint Committee on Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the other day, we discussed a course being run in near Dundalk in Louth where they have robotics.”
“They also have outdated furniture and outdated materials. When I go to primary schools, I will see the fantastic amount of technology they have such as interactive boards. We should have that in community training, Youthreach and adult education centres, where people learn for their apprenticeships. We should have that level of technology there as well. It would be really welcome to have those there. This should be the time we do this once and manage this fund correctly, so we do not have to do it again because we are going to invest the capital, so we are then able to invest in the learners and those trainers and teachers. Youthreach is such an effective way of engaging young people. There are two parts to it. There are those young people who come from mainstream, and it may not have been as successful as they would have liked.”
“I often talk about how education does not finish with the leaving certificate or junior certificate. It goes on and on. For many people it is a fantastic thing that they engage with on a regular basis, well past the need for qualifications or the skills for work. It is because they really love engaging in education. It is fantastic that, in this country, we have so many options open to people. I am surprised to see there is such an amount available that should have been used for the purposes it was set out for in the first place. However, I welcome that it will go towards capital expenditure because, as we spoke about this morning, if we go around the country there are buildings and centres that have needed upgrading for decades. They have faulty windows, leaky roofs and are desperately in need of a retrofit or two.”
“The difficulty is that the Department issues schools with so many circulars about things. This is one of those things that should be part of a circular to help schools to facilitate parents in vindicating their right to opt their children out. I am being told that children are being othered at the moment because there is no facility for them to opt out. They are sitting at the back of the classrooms and are unable to have their constitutional right upheld.”